Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Melody of the River
by kyokotheeevee
Summary: When an apathetic boy is the victim of a deadly accident, he is given one last chance at life to reform himself. What he doesn't know is that his new life is even more challenging than his old one, and he must break his old habits to save it from disaster. (I don't own anything.)
1. The Rushing Rapids

**What is up, people? It's me, Kyoko! And I am here with my promised sequel to ****_The Outbreak! _****This... is ****_Melody of the River._**

**I've kinda been thinking of this for a while now; what I have planned is kind of a lighter and softer story compared to ****_The Outbreak_****. But still... expect some character death and some darker tones within. Don't worry, there isn't any HYPER-REALISTIC BLOOD! ;)**

**This first chapter is kind of slow, but don't worry; we'll pick up the action soon. All stories start small.**

**So without further ado, I present to you my latest story! I hope you like it!**

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Melody of the River

Chapter 1: The Rushing Rapids

The idle chat of Aunt Elizabeth and Uncle Larry mixed with the roar of the rushing river. Jay Jackson could barely hear their voices over the rapids, but he could hear enough to know that they were bursting with excitement.

Aunt Elizabeth and Uncle Larry were _huge _thrill seekers. They loved roller coasters, fast cars, and bungee jumping off high cliffs—things most people would never dare to do.

Jay didn't.

Jay couldn't help but sigh in boredom as Uncle Larry began inflating the yellow rubber raft that would carry them down the river. He would much rather be at home, watching television in the cool comfort of his house.

Jay silently cursed his parents—if they hadn't been away on some stupid business trip, maybe he would have some time to be lazy. He detested staying with Aunt Elizabeth and Uncle Larry, as they were always on his case about being active.

"Are you ready to have some fun?"

Aunt Elizabeth's cheerful voice snapped him out of his negative thoughts and back to the present. Uncle Larry had finished blowing up the raft, and with a little help from their tour guide, they set it in the water. It was almost swept away by the rush of the rapids, but a rope had been tied to a wooden pole and the boat, so it didn't float away.

"Do I have to?" Jay replied grouchily.

"Would you rather sit all alone in the burning hot car and wait for us to return?" Uncle Larry quipped.

"At least the water will be nice and cool," Aunt Elizabeth added.

Jay sighed, holding his arms up in defeat. Although he was obviously less than thrilled about this thrill-seeking journey, anything was better than sitting alone in a hot car. Uncle Larry called his broken down car "vintage", but Jay just called it "old".

Plus, Aunt Elizabeth had a point—he had been complaining about the heat for quite a while, and even a little splash of water would cool his burning skin.

He sighed again, looking down at his feet. "Fine, fine. I'll go with you on your stupid rafting trip. Are you happy?" he mumbled grouchily.

_If you think I'm going to grow up to be some sort of crazy adrenaline junkie like you, you're absolutely wrong… _Jay added in his mind.

"Good!" Aunt Elizabeth said brightly.

The tour guide handed out bright orange life jackets to the three. Jay needed a bit of help tying his jacket on, and he couldn't help but feel embarrassed that his aunt was helping him with something he felt he could do himself.

"…clip these two together, and there! All set!" Aunt Elizabeth said as she finished tying Jay's life jacket on. She ruffled his black hair and smiled, ignoring the growing scowl on her nephew's face. "You look ready for an adventure!"

"And you look ridiculous," Jay mumbled under his breath. The life jacket looked rather big on his aunt, but further comment was drowned out by their guide's voice.

"Are you guys ready for the time of your lives?" the guide asked.

"Yeah!" Elizabeth and Uncle Larry cheered.

"I can't hear you! I said are you ready for the time of your lives?!" the guide repeated, his voice rising over the roar of the water.

"YEAH!" the adults cheered, their voices loud and full of energy.

"Yeah…" Jay said unenthusiastically.

"Then hop aboard and enjoy your trip down Blackwater River!" the guide cried, gesturing to the boat, which looked like it was about to float away.

Uncle Larry clambered into the boat, taking his place at the front. Aunt Elizabeth and Jay followed, Jay almost losing his balance as he stepped into the raft. He settled down at the back and stared straight ahead as his stomach fluttered; even though he was bored, he was also very nervous. He gripped the sides of the boat tightly.

The tour guide took out a pocket knife and began sawing away at the rope that attached the raft to the wooden stake, and with each saw, Jay could feel the boat shake slightly. A few drops of water sprayed in his face, sticking to his messy hair and his shirt. He looked down at his feet, trying to disguise his growing apprehension as disinterest.

The tour guide cut through the last strand of the rope, and with a little push, the raft began hurtling forward, riding with the speeding current.

Jay almost fell out of the boat. The sudden acceleration made his stomach lurch and his eyes rattle in his head. More water sloshed over the raft, making his shoes and his muddy blue jeans wet. The tour guide began to fade into the distance, and when the current swept them around a bend, he was lost entirely.

"Woohoo!" Uncle Larry cheered as the boat continued to pick up speed. He pumped his fist in the air and laughed as the wind rushed in his face. "This is awesome!"

"You said it!" Aunt Elizabeth cried as she put her hand up.

Jay was just focusing on not throwing up. The unsteady rocking of the raft made his abdomen ache, and the water that was constantly getting sprayed in his face didn't help either. The river water was muddy and smelled like sewage, but like Aunt Elizabeth had promised, it provided a welcome relief from the sweltering sun.

His aunt and uncle began to scream with delight, and Jay joined them, wailing from fright as the boat rocked and bumped down the river. Ahead, he could see the river twisting through the rocky landscape, and to him, it looked like a giant cobra rearing its head.

His heart pounded harder and harder as the boat picked up speeds. The land was starting to slope down, and they bumped and rocked as they rushed down the stream. At one point, Jay could've sworn he saw the silvery glint of a fish jump over the raft. Every so often, the raft would make a harsh turn, and the sudden increase in speed left Jay's stomach behind.

He rubbed his eyes tenderly as water sprayed in. His vision was starting to turn rather foggy—was it because of the water, or because of his nerves? He still felt like he was about to pass out, but then the boat would jolt him back. His stomach churned, and he began to regret the jumbo burrito he had eaten before this trip.

"This is the best rafting trip yet!" Aunt Elizabeth screamed as she wiped a drop of water from her face.

"No it's not—it's the worst!" Jay screamed, but he wasn't sure they could hear him. At that moment, Uncle Larry announced happily that "they hadn't even gotten to the best part", and Aunt Elizabeth chose to listen to him.

What happened next was terrifying to Jay, but absolutely awesome to his aunt and uncle. Their small boat dropped down a large cliff, splashing down in the shallow water at the bottom. The current was even stronger down there—Aunt Elizabeth's golden blonde hair blew in Jay's face as the raft coursed forward, growing ever faster.

Jay clutched the sides of the raft as hard as he could, his nails almost puncturing holes in it. He closed his eyes and finally gave into his sickness, and he leaned over the side to let loose his lunch. He almost toppled into the water, but he was holding on too tight to fall.

The boat whipped around the sharp turns of the stream, the water foaming and gurgling below. The river widened so much that Jay could scarcely see the banks. His heart felt like it was about to explode.

Just when he thought it couldn't get any worse, it happened.

Jay was still weak from losing his lunch, and his hands were covered in water and sweat. Even though he was squeezing the sides of the boat as hard as he could, the unexpected period of turbulence loosened his grip.

His hands were bumped off the sides, and he fell back, his head hitting the back of the raft. He tried to crawl back to his original spot, but his hands were shaking too hard, and he couldn't get a grip on the sides of the wet boat.

"Help!" he cried. "Help me!"

Aunt Elizabeth, who was sitting in front of him, turned around and realized the danger Jay was in. He looked like he was about to slide off the boat… only the lip of the raft was keeping him on it.

Aunt Elizabeth reacted quickly. She turned her whole body around and clambered over to Jay, reaching out a firm arm. "Hurry! Grab my hand!" she screamed.

Jay reached out, grasping at the air, but he was too far away… he could feel himself slipping further from his aunt's reach, closer to the water…

Aunt Elizabeth reached further, and Jay managed to grab her fingers—but only for a brief moment. Another bump made his hands slip again, and he lost his hold on her hand. The back of the boat was starting to sag under his weight.

"Larry! I need help! He's falling!" Aunt Elizabeth cried.

"I can't! I'm too far away, and the ground's too slippery! If I move, I'll just slip too!" Uncle Larry replied without looking back.

Aunt Elizabeth cursed under her breath. Jay weakly grabbed for a handhold, but he was too shaky to grasp on for more than a few seconds. His aunt inched closer, extending her hand as far as she could, but it was still tauntingly out of reach.

Before he knew what was happening, his feet were swept off the raft, and he fell into the river with a splash and a rush of bubbles.

He didn't even know what was going on… too many things were happening at once. His body submerged underwater before gently bobbing up, held afloat by his life vest. He gasped and blinked the water out of his eyes as he flailed about, trying to make sense of the situation he was in.

The rapids swept him forward, temporarily disabling his vision as a wave of foam washed over his head. He flailed his arms and legs in an attempt to swim to shore, but he had never been a particularly strong swimmer, and the shore was too far away…

He gasped and choked on the water that had gotten in his throat. He tried to swim forward, possibly catch up with the raft, but as his vision cleared, he realized he was too far away from the yellow boat. Even with the water pushing him forward at a dizzying speed, he knew he couldn't catch up with the raft.

Above the roar of the rapids, he could vaguely hear Aunt Elizabeth calling out "JAY!" Her voice reinvigorated him; although he was no fan of his aunt, he wanted to be safely on the raft with her and his uncle.

He brushed past a rock formation, and he heard a pop followed by the release of air. He looked to his shoulder and found that his life jacket had been punctured. His eyes widened—just when he thought things couldn't get any worse, now he couldn't even stay afloat.

A wave washed over him dragging him down underwater. Despite his best efforts, he couldn't get back up to the surface for air. After a few seconds of flailing around, he realized he was just tiring himself out. He remembered that struggling was a wonderful way to waste oxygen, and oxygen was invaluable to him now. He sat completely still and hoped that he would eventually find his way to the surface to breathe.

His senses felt numbed. He could vaguely feel himself being pushed forward, drifting with the choppy water. He didn't dare open his eyes or breathe, and he couldn't feel anything or above him. His mind began to spin and his heart began to race, working overtime as what little oxygen left his body.

But then, a blessing—his head briefly resurfaced, allowing him just enough time to take in a breath of air. When he was once again pulled under, he found that he had a bit more energy than before… but that energy was running out fast.

Suddenly, an excruciating pain shot through his skull. His head had been cracked on a rock.

He wanted to scream in pain, but he was still floating helplessly in the water. He squeezed his eyes shut and tucked his legs in, rubbing the place where his head hit the rocks. It didn't feel punctured, however, he could feel a large lump pushing through his hair.

He couldn't think straight after that. He felt like he was in space without a spacesuit: he was floating helplessly and couldn't do anything to prevent his inevitable death. He began to think about his parents—he had never said goodbye to them before they left for their business trip. He was too busy playing video games to care…

Now he would never get to say goodbye.

Jay's arms scraped across some rocks, opening up a few cuts, but that was of little worry to him. His mind was shutting down, slowly dying from the lack of oxygen.

His last thought before he fell unconscious was an apology.

_I'm sorry I didn't get to say goodbye…_

A small bubble left his mouth, and Jay Jackson slipped into unconsciousness.

XxX

"He's the one. I know it."

"HOW CAN YOU BE SO CERTAIN? HE SOUNDS COMPLETELY UNWILLING TO DO SOMETHING OF SUCH MAGNITUDE… HE IS NOTHING BUT A LAZY, SNARKY EXCUSE FOR A HUMAN BEING."

"That's just it. Even though he's disliked by many, his heart is in the right place. I heard him. During his final moments, I heard him speak his sorrow that he hadn't said goodbye to his parents. He can not only save us all, but by doing this, we'll be giving him a second chance at life. He can redeem himself from being the grouch he is now…"

"I SUPPOSE THAT MAKES SENSE…"

"So what do you say? Should we do it?"

"…WE SHOULD. BUT I AM WARNING YOU… IF THIS TURNS OUT TO BE A MISTAKE, I WILL BE VERY UPSET. WE WILL NOT GET ANOTHER CHANCE… I ONLY HAVE ENOUGH STRENGTH TO BRING ONE HUMAN. IF HE DOESN'T SAVE US, WE ARE TRULY DOOMED…"

XxX

**Let's call it a day. We're off to a good start, if I do say so myself! But how about you be the judges?**

**I hope you liked the first chapter of Jay Jackson's story. Don't forget to review!**


	2. Stranger in the River

**Hello, friends! I am back with a surprise for you~**

**This chapter isn't the greatest in terms of story progression or action, but it does give a little insight as to what the Pokemon world is like. Kind of a long read, but if you could sit through 85 chapters in ****_The Outbreak_****, you should have no trouble with this. I hope you like this chapter.**

Chapter 2: The Stranger at the River

Sage Forest was a very peaceful place. Green trees grew all around, the leafy green canopies filtering sunlight from above. Beautiful flowers could be found growing there, and a peaceful stream gurgled through it. Shrubs popped up from the ground, sprouting berries or colorful flowers.

Sage Forest was a mystery dungeon, but the wild Pokémon that inhabited the area were not looking for a fight, unless you disturbed their nests. The path was also fairly straightforward, and it was rather hard to get lost if you knew your landmarks.

On this sunny day, a young white and gray Starly fluttered down from a branch. It flew to a nearby bush that was covered in ripe pink Pecha Berries. It pecked at a few berries, savoring the sweet juices carefully as it did so.

Suddenly, the peacefulness of the forest was interrupted by someone racing past.

The Starly let out a fierce chirp as it fluttered to a nearby tree. Looking to the south, it noticed the Pokémon was a tan and pink cat—a Skitty. Skitties weren't normally that fast… unless it was in danger.

The Starly just had time to take to the skies before the danger revealed itself.

Two small dogs with bushy tails rushed past, their teeth bared and their eyes fierce. They were Growlithes, and even though they were rather small, their Fire type attacks could be devastating.

They were followed by an Arcanine, which looked like a bigger and more powerful Growlithe. Its stride covered almost a yard, and it was clear that the Arcanine was much faster than the pups in front of it.

The Skitty was far ahead of the three dogs; far enough ahead to take a quick break. Even though Aria the Skitty considered herself fairly strong, she didn't have very good endurance, and she found herself tiring quickly.

Aria leaned up against a tree, looking at the worn leather Explorer Bag on her side. She unfastened it and dug through the sash, eventually finding a small sky blue berry: an Oran Berry. She scarfed it down, paying no attention to the tart taste as it went down her throat.

Before she fastened up her bag, she dug through it, making sure that she was still holding onto the Dawn Stone. It had been hard work taking it from the Growlithes and the Arcanine, but she knew it was worth it.

_That Ralts back at the guild needs this more than I ever will, _she thought to herself.

The growls and barks of her pursuers grew louder. Her keen sense of smell detected a faint burning scent in the air, indicating that Arcanine wasn't far off. She fastened the bag, knowing her break time was up, and she continued to flee through the forest.

Aria wove around the trees, rolling under logs and leaping over low lying shrubs. The ground began to slope down, and a thin stream of water trickled down with it. She was relieved—she knew she was almost to the river that separated the forest from the guild.

She followed the stream of water down the hill, watching as it slowly dripped down. She stayed hot on her feet—her enemies were not far behind. She could practically feel them breathing down her neck…

She didn't dare look behind her, instead focusing on what was in front of her. The trees were thinning and the stream had collected in a small pond of water, and she knew she was almost to safety. She gritted her teeth and concentrated harder than ever on running…

"Move faster, fools!" Arcanine demanded. "Don't let her get away!"

She could hear the snarls of Arcanine's minions behind her, louder than ever. Her heart beat faster as she felt the air heat up…

Her instincts took over as the Growlithes spat out dual bursts of flame. She rolled out of the way, narrowly avoiding the jets of fire. The bursts hit a nearby bush and began burning it, but Aria didn't care. She knew she was almost out of the forest; she didn't care if something was burning…

She glanced behind her and found that the Growlithes were right on her tail—literally. One of them lunged forward, teeth bared, and tried to snap at her tail. She whipped it out of the way, tucking it into her backside as she continued running.

Aria gave one last burst of speed, and trampling over a few flowers, she leapt out of the forest and into the sunlit meadow beyond. Looking ahead, she could see the rolling hills sloping down into a valley. A wide river choked with reeds gurgled a few yards downhill, and at the very base of the hill was a small building bearing the likeness of a green dragon: Flygon's Guild.

She began to charge down the hill, her speed increasing as she approached the river. She began silently chanting to herself, reminding herself that the guild was only a little ways away… she could throw her attackers off at the river; although her assailants were fierce, they were Fire types and were easily weakened by water.

Aria glanced behind her and saw that the criminals were trailing far behind; after the Growlithe had failed to bite her tail, it had stumbled and fallen back. The Arcanine kicked it back onto its feet, and with a harsh "You idiot! Keep moving!" they resumed their chase. But Aria was still very far ahead.

She finally reached the bottom of the hill and slowed her pace to a gentle jog. The thieves were far enough behind that she didn't need to run as fast. She approached the bank of the peacefully gurgling river and sat down.

_Whew… that was fun, _she thought as she settled down next to a pile of reeds. _But all in a day's work. I wonder what my reward will be when I return to the guild…_

She could still hear the snarls of the dogs, but she wasn't concerned—with the river on her side, she could beat any old Fire type. However, just to be cautious, she kept one eye on the top of the hill.

Aria took several deep breaths, looking at the crystal clear water that was rushing down the riverbed. She found it relaxing to look at the flowing river; it helped keep her mind off distractions and problems. She would often come down here just to look at the water, just to take a break from the bustle of the guild…

_I wonder where this river leads… Maybe there's treasure at the end, _she thought wistfully.

Suddenly, she snapped out of her daydreams. There was something in the river… something alive!

Partially hidden in the reeds was an aqua blue Pokémon with a massive jaw. Its arms and legs were rather stubby, and its tail was rather small. It had a tan belly and a few red spikes on its head and tail. It wasn't moving, but it was breathing, so it was perhaps unconscious.

Aria recognized it at once: a Totodile.

Panic began to fill her body. She had never seen a Totodile around these parts, and she had lived here for several years. Who was the Totodile? How had it ended up unconscious in the water? Had it been injured?

She turned around, her heart hammering, and found that the Growlithes and Arcanine were thundering down the hill at a breakneck speed. She couldn't leave the Totodile to the mercy of the criminals… she couldn't let them see it at all.

_Who knows what they'll do when they find an unconscious Totodile? They're low enough to steal from a young Ralts… I'd hate to imagine what they'd do to this little guy, especially considering that he's unconscious…_

Aria made a split second decision: as soon as she chased off the thieves, she'd go back to the guild and get Guildmaster Flygon. Surely she'd know what to do about the Totodile…

She turned around just in time to see the dogs reach the bottom of the hill. The Growlithes snarled, inching closer to Aria, while Arcanine lingered behind them, smirking.

"So. You managed to get past us and steal back the Dawn Stone. I must say, you are very lucky… and very foolish," Arcanine growled.

The Growlithes pawed at Aria, growling and preparing to pounce. Aria knew she had to fight back—and she knew just what to do.

Her lip quivered and she backed up, trying to look scared. Of course, she wasn't scared at all—it was all part of her plan. She'd make herself look like a weakling before her attackers, and when they were about to attack…

"Aw, what's the matter?" one of the Growlithes said leeringly.

"Is little Skitty-witty nothing more than a scaredy-cat?" the other taunted.

"D-don't call me that!" Aria said, her voice catching as she tried to avoid laughing. "I… I can beat you guys! I can!"

"What are you going to do? Make us explode from cuteness?" the first Growlithe teased.

"Shut up and attack them!" Arcanine demanded suddenly.

The two Growlithes reared back their heads, inhaling and preparing to launch another Fire type attack. She bent her knees and prepared to jump up…

Just as they expelled dual blasts of fire, she leapt to the side. Although her tail was slightly singed, she avoided most of the attack. She snuck around to the Growlithes, a smile on her face as she prepared to attack.

When the smoke cleared, she smirked. The Growlithes just had time to register her leaping at them before the Skitty was at their throats.

"Scaredy-cats have mean tempers, and you just set mine off," she said with a leering grin.

The Growlithes struggled to throw her off, wailing and kicking their legs. They did eventually manage to kick Aria off them, but when they were free, they turned around and retreated instead of attacking. They raced off, whimpering like sad puppies.

It was just her and the Arcanine now.

Arcanine growled, pawing the ground. Anger burned in his eyes, but Aria wasn't scared. After taking out his accomplices, surely Arcanine would be an easy defeat.

"You must think you're so clever, lulling my underlings into a false sense of security before attacking them. A smart move—I don't know why I didn't notice it earlier…" Arcanine growled softly as he circled around Aria.

"Oh, whatever. Let's just stop talking and fight," Aria said simply.

Arcanine didn't even respond to that. He lunged forward at a blinding speed, so fast that Aria couldn't dodge. He scratched the Skitty in the chest, and she sprawled to the ground, clutching her abdomen and gasping in pain.

Arcanine towered over her, looking all too confident. Aria eyed the reeds where the unconscious Totodile was half hidden—and was it just her, or did she see some of the reeds shift?

"Your lucky streak is over, Skitty…" Arcanine growled as he leered at the young Pokémon.

"No it's not!" Aria replied cheerfully.

Before Arcanine could react, Aria rolled under his legs and got to her feet on the other side. She charged forward before her foe could turn around, and she leapt onto Arcanine with all her might: a full power Tackle attack. Aria grabbed onto the tan fur on the back of Arcanine's head and held on tight.

Arcanine roared and stomped around, desperately trying to get Aria off his back, but she held strong. The tan fur was actually quite cozy and warm, and Aria began to think about how wonderful it would be to have a blanket made out of Arcanine fuzz.

_Maybe I'll do that when I defeat this sucker… _she thought with a smile.

Aria bit into Arcanine's back, making him roar with pain. She finally let go as Arcanine stormed off, howling in defeat. Aria grinned, her sharp teeth glinting in the sunlight.

"That's what you get for messing with me!" she cried as Arcanine raced up the hill and out of sight.

Aria sat down, her heart racing from the battle. She had always had a slight fear of doglike Pokémon; they were usually very loud and rough. She always got a kick out of defeating them in mystery dungeons, and now she was feeling particularly proud.

Her euphoria over winning lasted only a few moments: she remembered the unconscious Totodile drifting in the river… was he doing okay?

She leapt off her feet and peeked around the reeds. Sure enough, the Totodile was still there, unconscious but still breathing. Aria let out a sigh of relief; even though she knew Water type Pokémon could breathe underwater, she had still worried that the Totodile had drowned.

She looked down the hill at the guild, remembering what her plan was. Surely Guildmaster Flygon could help with the unconscious Pokémon… Even though this Totodile was a complete stranger, she couldn't bear the thought of leaving a Pokémon unconscious at the edge of a mystery dungeon.

She jumped into the water, which was pleasantly cool and provided welcome relief from the scorching midday sun ahead. She walked down to the unconscious Pokémon and finally got a good look at it.

There seemed to be nothing strange about the Totodile, aside from the fact that it was unconscious. The chilly water was washing over its body, keeping it cool from the bright sun's rays. She placed her head over his heart, and she was relieved to find it was still beating strong and steady.

Aria glanced around, her ears perking up and her tail twitching nervously. She scanned the area for other Pokémon; after her encounter with Arcanine, she couldn't help but be a bit cautious. Much to her relief, she found there was nobody but herself and the Totodile.

She glanced around one more time, making absolute certain that no one was watching. Her ears perked up and she listened for any unusual sounds—maybe someone was hiding in the reeds—but the only sound she could hear was the gurgle of the cool water.

Just to be sure that no one would find it, she decided to hide the Totodile completely in the reeds. The reeds grew thick around here, and unless someone was looking really closely, they wouldn't see the Totodile amongst them.

Moving its body was a surprisingly difficult task. It was relatively heavy, and the current of the water worked against her. But she worked hard, invigorated by the cool water and the worry of someone discovering the unconscious Pokémon. After a few minutes of straining to push its body, she managed to roll him over and push him into the reeds.

She stepped back, satisfied with her efforts. She quickly arranged some of the reeds so they would completely cover the Totodile, and when she was certain no one would see it, she leapt out of the water and blazed down to Flygon's Guild.

XxX

Flygon's Guild didn't look like much—it just looked like a raggedy old tent flanked by two stone towers, but it was well known throughout the region for being a wonderful exploration guild.

Many a famous explorer had started their career at the guild, and Aria was proud to be a part of it. She loved exploring, and her dream was to become a member of a world-famous exploration team.

But to be a part of a team, she needed a partner, which was something that she sadly lacked.

As she rushed towards the entrance of the guild, she began to run through what she was going to say to Guildmaster Flygon. Although the Guildmaster was very kind, she did not like it when her apprentices barged in without reason.

_"__Hey. Sorry to barge in on you like this, but there's a strange Totodile lying unconscious in the river. That's all."_

The words sounded dumb even in her head.

"Halt! Who goes there?"

Aria looked up, not realizing she was now standing in front of the tent. She found that she was about to run into the iron bars in front of the entrance to the tent—as an extra precaution, Flygon had installed bars in front of the entrance to prevent intruders from entering.

Of course, the bars could be raised and lowered to allow entry for apprentices, but before they could even think about entering, they had to answer to security.

Stationed on top of the towers were two apprentices of the guild. A Plusle stood on the right tower while a Minun stood on the left. The two young apprentices were very peppy and enjoyed their jobs as security guards. Only they could raise and lower the iron bars.

Plusle peeked over the edge of her tower, her ears twitching up as she saw Aria. Her red cheeks sparked with electricity and her black eyes shone with happiness—she was a very good friend of the Skitty that was standing in front of the guild.

"Oh, hello, Aria!" Plusle said brightly. She turned around and called to her brother Minun: "It's Aria! She's back from exploring!"

"Hey, guys. Listen, I'm kinda in a hurry, so can you just raise the gate and let me in? I really need to speak to the Guildmaster," Aria said, pacing nervously in place.

"We're on it!" Minun piped.

The two Pokémon disappeared over the tower. Aria could hear the grunts of the two struggling to crank the barred walls up. She could hear the sound of chains being pulled and pulleys working, and a low rumbling in the ground indicated that the portcullis was being raised.

The iron bars retracted into the roof of the guild, leaving the entrance wide open. The interior of the tent was revealed: it was little more than a network of poles and a few woven tapestries, but the main feature was a hole in the middle of the room and the ladder that led into the bowels of the guild.

Aria didn't waste any time looking around the tent; she scrambled down the ladder as fast as she could.

The guild was a truly amazing place. It was an underground network of tunnels and rooms, and the two floors were separated by holes and ladders. There were individual rooms for each of the apprentices and several other rooms, including a mess hall, a main room, the Guildmaster's chamber, and even a few shops. The entire network was lit up by torches.

On the first underground story, two corkboards were tacked on the walls. A few Pokémon milled about, talking quietly and running errands.

The lowest story was home to the apprentices, the mess hall, and the Guildmaster's chamber. Aria, who was only interested in the Guildmaster's chamber, ran down the second ladder without hesitation.

When she reached the base of the second ladder, she scrambled to the Guildmaster's chamber, which was a separate room sitting right next to the ladders. She desperately banged on the wooden door, screaming "I—need—to—see—the—Guildmaster!"

The door swung open. Aria expected to see the Guildmaster behind the door, but instead, a large, bipedal crocodile with sharp teeth and black spikes opened it. It was Krokorok, Flygon's assistant.

Aria flinched. Krokorok was her least favorite member of the guild. He was incredibly strict and would not hesitate to take away dinner or other privileges for minor offenses. Aria had even heard rumors that he bitten a fellow apprentice once—but surely that was just a rumor… right?

"What do you want, Aria? You know the Guildmaster doesn't like it when annoyances like you bug 'er…" Krokorok said in his usual scratchy voice.

"Please, sir. This is urgent. I really need to see her—" Aria stammered. She could feel herself trembling under Krokorok's fierce black eyes, but she forced herself to stay strong.

"If you can tell the Guildmaster, you can tell me. What is it?" Krokorok asked softly. He bent down low to Aria, breathing his putrid breath in her face. He frowned, and she could see two yellow teeth sticking out of his mouth—a grim reminder that he would use them on her if she didn't obey.

"Just please… I-it's really urgent, and I need—" Aria squeaked, her sentence coming to a halt. Krokorok's stare intensified, and she felt like his stare would vaporize her if she didn't answer immediately.

Aria was tempted to scamper off and say "Oh, just forget it", but just then, the door squeaked open again.

Guildmaster Flygon appeared right behind Krokorok, her eyes bright and her wings flapping to keep her afloat. A red bandana was tied around her neck, and for whatever reason, Aria found herself focusing on the individual creases of the handkerchief.

"Krokorok! Don't intimidate young Aria here! If she says she needs me, she probably needs me!" Flygon said, waving a disciplining finger at the crocodile.

Krokorok stood up, still keeping an eye on Aria. Aria relaxed a bit, but she was still worried—was the Totodile still okay?

"But Guildmaster… I thought you didn't want anyone interrupting… This is private business, you know…" Krokorok said, his voice holding a tinge of concern Aria had never heard before.

"It is, but we can discuss it later. If Aria has something important she wants to say, by all means, she can share it with me!" Flygon said.

She gestured for her assistant to move out of the way, and as Krokorok grudgingly stepped aside, Aria couldn't mistake the stink eye he was still giving her.

"I'm truly sorry for worrying you, my dear. What was it you wanted to say to me?" Flygon said, her tone turning bright at once.

Aria took a deep breath, trying to calm her jumpy nerves. _Relax, _she told herself. _Just tell her what's wrong… it's just like I rehearsed…_

"Okay. So I'm exploring in Sage Forest, right? And I eventually complete my day's task, so I decide I want to come home," she began. She tried to keep her voice steady, but her heart was beating incredibly fast… The shock of finding a strange Totodile was still fresh in her mind.

"Congratulations on completing another day's task, Aria," Flygon said, nodding and smiling.

"Thank you, but we'll have time for celebration later. On my way back, I passed by the river, and I found something… strange in it…" she continued.

Flygon didn't interrupt. Her eyes widened, clearly indicating the Skitty to continue.

"It was a Pokémon. A Totodile, to be exact. It was lying in the water, unconscious but still breathing. And I'm kinda worried about it…" she completed.

Flygon was silent for a moment, digesting the short story that Aria had told her. She glanced from Aria to Krokorok to the guild, then back to her chamber, which was flickering with firelight. She finally snapped out of her thoughts and nodded, turning back to Krokorok.

"Krokorok. Watch the guild. I'll be back before sundown," she said shortly.

"Ma'am… With all due respect, are you really going to go out there and rescue a Pokémon which we have no knowledge of? It could be dangerous—a spy sent from—" Krokorok began.

Flygon's glare intensified. Krokorok tried to maintain a calm pose, but Aria could see his jaw tighten. She stepped back, her lip quivering, not wanting to be anywhere near them if fighting broke out.

"Unless you want to be left in a river unconscious, you will not question my orders. Remain here and supervise the guild. Make sure nothing happens. If they ask where I went, tell them that I'll be back soon. Surely not even you can mess this up… right?" Flygon said.

Krokorok looked like he wanted to argue her orders, but his jaw remained shut. He let loose a sigh and turned around, examining the apprentices and Pokémon that were roaming about. "Very well, Guildmaster. I will obey your orders." He sounded none too thrilled about it.

"Good." Flygon turned to Aria, who was relieved that the situation had been resolved peacefully. "So you said this Totodile was unconscious in the nearby river?" she asked the youth.

"Yes! He looked okay—no cuts or bruises—he was in perfect shape… aside from the fact that he was unconscious, that is…" Aria explained.

Flygon approached the ladder, looking back at her apprentice. She looked scared but determined to help, and though her tail twitched nervously, she knew she could count on Aria the Skitty.

"Well, what are you waiting for? If you went through all the trouble to get me, surely you're gonna help me out!" Flygon said playfully.

"Oh—of course! Certainly!" Aria said, scrambling to the base of the ladder.

Flygon fluttered up the ladder, beckoning her apprentice to follow. Aria climbed up the rungs of the ladder, her heart hammering in apprehension and excitement.

_Maybe he's the one…_

XxX

**Another day, another chapter. Whoo!**

**I'm sure you all know who that mysterious Totodile is (I'll give you a hint: it's Jay) and I'm sure you can all tell that Aria will become his partner. I know, Totodile and Skitty is a bit weird, but hey, I like cats. Nya nya~**

**Also, Ace... This story takes place after ****_The Outbreak _****but before ****_Dark Wars, _****if you were wondering. Maybe about a year or so after the climax.**

**Anyway, I hope you like this chapter. Don't forget to review!**


	3. Awakening

**Hey, what's up? I'm back with another chapter.**

**...This is the point where I'd say something witty or clever, but I'm all out of ideas. So, um... enjoy...?**

Chapter 3: Awakening

The gentle trickle of water woke Jay from his endless slumber. He was incredibly weak; he could barely move his muscles or even open his eyelids. A slight pain near the top of his skull throbbed, sending a wave of pain through his head.

His mind was foggy and his thoughts unclear. He could barely remember the events that led up to the present. Questions flooded his mind: where was he? How did he get here? What happened that had knocked him out for so long?

The more he pondered these questions, the more his head hurt. He decided to relax, stop thinking, let the cool water wash over him…

_Water…?_

Panic filled his mind as memories flooded back. The river! He was still in the river! Still floating away from Aunt Edith and Uncle Lenny… He had to find help! Had to do something… had to go…

He tried to lift his hand above the water. He had to swim… there had to be some way to survive… he tried lifting his eyelids to see, but when he did, the cool water stung his eyes, forcing him to close them again…

His thoughts became muddled again. He couldn't breathe… he couldn't breathe… he had to find help. He tried crying out, but his words were distorted by the stream… he could feel himself slipping away…

_No… please, no…_

XxX

"There it is, Guildmaster! The Totodile!"

Aria rushed forward to the clump of reeds and began to desperately push them aside to reveal the body of the Totodile. Flygon watched idly with a worried look on her brow.

Aria grabbed handfuls of reeds and pushed them into the water. She almost choked with happiness when she saw that the Totodile was still waiting there, unconscious in its bed of water and reeds.

She put a hand over its heart and was relieved to find it still pumping life. Its chest rose and fell, and it was unaffected by the water that was flowing over its nose.

Flygon fluttered over and examined the Totodile. She put a clawed hand on its forehead and gently opened its eyelid, occasionally murmuring something to herself.

She ran a hand over its head, and the Totodile suddenly winced, stirring in its sleep. It waved a hand and murmured something, but it didn't seem to wake.

"It's bruised… Perhaps a concussion…" Flygon murmured to herself.

"Is it going to be okay?" Aria asked, her voice laced with worry.

Flygon picked up the body, placing a hand over its heart. The Totodile coughed in its sleep and shuddered as it was pulled out of the water. She felt its forehead once more, and after a few tense moments, she nodded.

"He'll be okay… but he'll need some help. He was hit pretty hard on the head, and if he was sitting in the stream the whole day, surely he'll be a bit disoriented. We'll take him in for a while, look after him until he's feeling better," Flygon stated.

Aria felt an unexplained flush of relief. Even though she had no idea who this mystery Totodile was, she was glad that he was going to be okay.

_Maybe it's just my explorer spirit… I'm always used to helping complete strangers… _

Instead of showing her happiness, Aria remained static, not wanting to look unprofessional in front of the Guildmaster. She asked a simple question but otherwise remained silent: "How do you know it's a boy?"

"I could hear him talk in his sleep… Something about Aunt Eloise and Uncle Luke…" Flygon replied. She shook her head. "But no matter. We should get back to the guild. It's getting late, and he'll need help."

Flygon flapped her mighty wings and flew up a few feet, shaking off some water that had gotten on her skin. She carried the unconscious Totodile in her arms.

Aria hopped out of the river and was surprised that the sun was starting to set. The sky was starting to turn red and purple, and several stars started winking to life. The day had just flown by—one minute, she was eating breakfast, the next, she was battling Arcanine, the next, she was assisting the Guildmaster rescuing the Totodile…

"Oh, and one more thing, Aria?" the Guildmaster said.

Aria perked up and looked at Flygon, who was observing her with a faint smile on her face. "Thank you for alerting me of this, young one. You have a brave heart with kindness to spare… you are a great explorer."

Aria smiled, feeling her heart flutter at this compliment. Although the Guildmaster was very kind, she had incredibly high expectations, and she was rather hard to please. If she had earned the Guildmaster's respect…

"Thank you, Guildmaster," Aria said, bowing respectfully.

"Now, let's go back to the guild. I'm kind of worried about leaving Krokorok in charge while I'm gone, and I just hope the whole place hasn't blown up," Flygon said mischievously.

Aria snorted in laughter. "Yeah. Leave him alone for a while, and who knows what'll happen?"

The two began their journey downhill to the guild, the unconscious Totodile in Flygon's arms. Neither of them knew what great adventures would await them when the Totodile finally awoke.

XxX

"A Totodile?"

"I've never seen one around here before!"  
>"Does it bite?"<p>

"Where did you find it?"

"Can I poke it?"

The blur of voices gently brought Jay out of his sleep once more. He still felt very weak; indeed, it felt like he was nothing more than a ragdoll hanging limply in someone's arms.

He couldn't open his eyes, but a rush of information flooded through his other senses. His skin felt warm, but not unpleasantly so—it felt like he was wrapped in a warm towel. Many voices entered his ears, but he could barely distinguish the words. None of the voices sounded familiar.

A strange, unfamiliar smell wafted into his nostrils. It smelled like a scented candle or burning incenses. It was a warm scent that reminded Jay of home. He began to relax, the scent making his eyelids droop.

His eyes suddenly shot open with a gasp. Even though the atmosphere smelled so sweet, it wasn't home… He was somewhere else. Somewhere foreign.

Questions swam in his mind like panicked little fish. Where was he? How had he gotten there? Was he safe? Did they fish him out of the river? Aunt Emma and Uncle Logan… Were they okay? Or was he dead? Were they grieving over him?

"He's awake!"

"Watch out, Guildmaster!"

"He might bite you!"

"Can I poke him?"

"QUIET!"

The harshness of the voice made him squeeze his eyes shut and squirm in place. He realized that he was being held by someone—his feet weren't touching the ground… but who was holding him?

The voices quieted down with the scream. Jay's head, which had been pulsing with pain, suddenly stopped pounding. He tried to wiggle out of the hands of the stranger, but he was still too weak…

"I don't want anyone speaking until we get him safely to bed. If anyone makes a peep or tries to touch him, you'll go a week without supper! Do I make myself clear?!" the voice demanded.

Jay's heart raced. The speaker sounded so fierce… he didn't want to see who she was… he wanted to get out of here, run away from the screaming voice, do something…

Nobody dared speak a word; apparently the threat of no dinner was a very real possibility. He could feel his captor's arms tighten, as if to detain him… He moaned in defeat, wanting nothing more than to be with Aunt Ezra and Uncle Lyle…

He felt himself being set down on some soft grass. His panic had made him almost numb to the outside world, so when he opened his eyes, he didn't believe anything was true.

The only light came from a flickering torch; everything else was dark. It looked like he was in some sort of underground room, with a mud roof and hard dirt walls. He felt like he was lying down on a bed of straw and soft grass, and a soft woven quilt had been placed over his body.

_Urgh… What… happened…? _Jay thought groggily.

Suddenly, two faces towered over his, and Jay almost lost himself.

They weren't in the least bit human. One face had a long nose, sharp teeth, tan skin, and dark black stripes. Its eyes glowed black like the midnight sky. It was very crocodilian in design.

The other looked like a dragon, or possibly a dragonfly. It had a green face, large wings, red lenses over its eyes, and two arms that ended in clawed fingers. Despite the rather menacing appearance, both of them looked rather concerned.

Jay screamed, fear coursing through his body. "AAAAAAAAAH! M-monsters! Ge-get away! Get away!" He leapt off the pile of straw and raced to the other side of the room, pushing himself against the wall. His heart was pounding, and a sudden image of the crocodile eating him flashed through his mind. His eyes widened in fear and his lip trembled.

The dragon creature looked to him, looking confused and concerned. "We aren't monsters!"

The fact that it could speak surprised Jay. The fact that the dragon was a female surprised him even more; he had expected the dragon to have a rough, masculine voice.

"We're not gonna hurt you, little guy…"

The crocodile's voice was what he had expected for the dragon: he had a deep tone that reminded Jay of sandpaper. His voice made chills run down his spine, and his massive yellow teeth made him even more afraid.

The dragon flapped her wings, flying forward to Jay. He wanted to melt into the ground and disappear, go away from the madness of the whole situation. But he couldn't do anything but tremble in fear and squeeze his eyes shut as the dragon approached him…

"You know, you're acting awfully weird for a Totodile," the dragon said.

Jay opened up one eye and looked at the dragon, who was a few feet in front of him. She looked awfully confused at his fear, and Jay couldn't help but think there was something seriously wrong with him.

He was confused as well. _What did she just call me? A "Totodile"? Is that some kind of nickname for me? _Jay spoke up despite his fear and confusion.

"What's a Totodile?"

The dragon looked at the crocodile and murmured a few words. Jay couldn't catch her words, but judging by the furtive glances down at him, his suspicions grew that there was something different.

_Argh… This is a weird dream… I wake up and find lots of weird creatures staring at me like I'm some sort of freak…_

But it felt too real to be a dream… He had never been able to smell scents in his dreams, and the colors were too bright, too vivid to be just a figment of his imagination. This was reality.

Jay's stomach lurched. Was there really something wrong with him? The dragon and crocodile seemed to be talking about him like there was… What if he was growing a third arm?

Jay glanced down at his arms and was relieved to find he still had two… but then he realized that there _was _indeed something wrong with his arms.

They were a light sky blue with exactly four fingers at the end. His fingers looked more like claws—they were pointed at the end like talons.

Panic rose up in his chest. Looking down, he found that his entire body was blue. He was also much shorter—his pudgy legs barely brought him two feet off the ground. His chest had a stripe of tan zigzagging through his blue belly.

He gasped, and when he opened up his mouth, he realized his face had been elongated into a snout. He could still feel his teeth, but they had been filed into sharp points. He even had a tail: although it was very small, he could still feel it.

"Oh… Oh no…!"

He gasped, breathing quick breaths as he grabbed his head. "No no no no no no no… Please, please no…" His eyes crossed and he turned around in a circle as if chasing his tail. Panic had taken over his body and mind, turning him into a hyperventilating mess.

"A-are you okay?" the dragon asked.

"NOOOOOOOOO!"

He curled his body up into a tiny ball and squeezed his eyes shut, desperately hoping to wake from the terrible nightmare he was stuck in. He trembled and was surprised to find tears squeezing out of his eyes. Where were his parents? Where were Aunt Edith and Uncle Lloyd? Where was his previous life?

_No… no… please, please let this all be a dream… I'm just dreaming… I'll wake up and be able to watch TV all day… this is just a dream… just… a… dream…_

He felt a hand on his shoulder, and he jerked away. "No! Get away from me!" he screamed as he uncurled from his ball.

Jay looked up to find that the dragon was hovering in front of him. Her eyes were wide with concern, but Jay was still too terrified to talk to her.

"G-get away—Flygon!"

_Flygon?_

He didn't even know where the word had come from. It had just… popped into his mind.

He looked at the large tan crocodile, and suddenly, he had a name for him too: Krokorok.

Jay began to hyperventilate again. "No… This is crazy! I don't even know who you are! How do I know your names?" he gasped.

"It's basic Pokémon instinct. Nobody knows why, but we somehow are able to instinctively recognize other species," Flygon explained.

"Wait. Pokey-what?" Jay asked. Despite his lingering anxiety, he was still very confused as to what was going on.

_Is that what I am? A Pokémon?_

Flygon turned to Krokorok and began to converse in hushed tones. Jay caught the word "amnesia", and he began to think that he had found the reason why he was so confused.

It was a strange case. Jay somewhat knew what had happened—he remembered something about nearly drowning in a river, and he remembered his aunt and uncle… but he couldn't remember their names—was it Aunt Elsa and Uncle Lyon, or Aunt Elvira and Uncle Leon? He couldn't remember _anyone—_just disjointed events.

Jay moaned, slinking down to the floor. Things couldn't get any worse. He was a big mouthed alligator stuck in a world of monsters and he had been yanked away from his previous life. Although he could barely remember what he was like before, he thought that anything would be better than this.

Flygon and Krokorok turned to the defeated Totodile. Flygon asked him a question, so simple but so complicated. "We believe you may have contracted amnesia… There was a pretty large lump on your head, so perhaps you suffered some brain damage—"

"Brain damage?! Ugh… Just when I thought things couldn't get any worse…" Jay murmured.

"Do you remember anything that happened before we found you?" Flygon asked soothingly.

The river. His aunt and uncle. His former life. His life as a human, not as a crocodile. They all seemed so distant, so alien… would he ever be able to return to the real world? The human world?

Jay sighed. His memories were so distant, and if there was a way to become a human again, that was surely a ways off as well. _I may as well work with these guys… After all, surely things can't get any worse…_

"I just have a few memories… really scattered memories. But by far the most prominent memory… I was a human at one point," Jay said cautiously.

Krokorok looked shocked. He opened his mouth and looked like he was about to say something, but before he could, Flygon interrupted him.

"A human, you say?" she asked.

She didn't look surprised as Krokorok was; she was more curious than shocked. Her brow creased and she gave Jay a strange look as if beckoning for him to continue.

"Yeah… I remember my name, too. It's Jay, by the way," Jay added.

Flygon continued to examine him with increasing interest—or worry. Krokorok whispered something to her, but the dragon murmured something back and shooed him away with a wave of her arm. Krokorok nodded and hastily shuffled out of the room.

"Hmm…" Flygon mused.

"What?" Jay asked hopefully. "Do you have an idea as to why I became a Pokémon?"

"No… not quite," Flygon replied with a smile. "But I think I know of a way to find out more about your past and your transformation," she added.

"What is it?" Jay asked, nearly biting his lip in anticipation… but then he remembered his teeth were as sharp as nails. He ended up accidentally biting the inside of his cheek instead.

"There's a young Skitty here by the name of Aria. She's been desperately looking for a partner to form an exploration team with her, and now that you've shown up, I think you'll be the perfect fit!" Flygon said.

Jay groaned, the happy bubble inside him puncturing instantly. Even though he didn't know what the heck an "exploration team" was, he didn't like the sound of it at all.

_When did my life become so terrible?_

XxX

**I wanted to make Jay's personality kind of like a dopey kid: he doesn't want to do anything other than sit around and be lazy. And now he's going to be part of an exploration team, where being lazy is being a bad explorer.**

**This is going to be interesting.**

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Don't forget to review!**


	4. Team River Song

**Hey, guys! Guess what day it is? Guess what day it is?!**

**No, it's not hump day, though I wish it was. But today is the one-year anniversary of ****_The Outbreak!_**** It's amazing that in one year, I've come from one little chapter to an 85 chapter epic... I couldn't have done that without your constant help!**

**But all that aside, I'd like to present another chapter in my story. I hope you like it~**

Chapter 4: Team River Song

"Aria?"

The rough voice of Krokorok woke the Skitty from her semi consciousness. She was just on the edge of falling asleep on her straw bed in her room when Krokorok woke her up.

She groaned and rolled over on her bed, pawing at her eyes and moaning her complaints. "Urgh… It can't be time to wake up now, can it?" she muttered.

"The Guildmaster has requested your appearance. You are to go straight to her and not ask any questions. Do you understand?" Krokorok said, his voice sounding dull and monotonous. Aria was vaguely reminded of a robot.

Despite his orders not to ask questions, she had to divert all her energy into keeping her mouth shut. What could the Guildmaster want from her now? Surely she wasn't in trouble… was she?

_Maybe it's about the Totodile…?_

"If you want to go to bed sooner, you'll follow me without question," Krokorok said, his voice steely and firm.

Aria moaned. "Well, when you put it that way…" she mumbled under her breath.

She got to her feet and blinked her eyes open, her vision adjusting to the semidarkness of her room. Her bed of straw and grass was sitting in the middle, and a thin layer of moss served as "carpet" of sorts. The room was lit by the dying fires of the torches on the wall.

Aria had grown used to this room. Although it was small, it was home… much better than some of her previous accommodations.

"Now!" Krokorok demanded.

Aria scuttled out of her room and into the dimly lit hallway.

Several tunnels branched off from the hallway here. Her fellow apprentices slept in some of the other rooms, but with Krokorok's outburst, some had woken up.

"Hey! What's the big deal?!"

This voice was probably Altaria's—although she was incredibly nice and had a good singing voice, she _hated _when people disturbed her sleep.

"We're trying to sleep in here!"

This was undoubtedly Cranidos, who was quick-tempered and irritable but a softie at heart. Aria had heard that Cranidos would sometimes go on rampages if he didn't get enough sleep… and his temper tantrums had been responsible for many injuries.

Krokorok ignored their complaints and continued to stride forward to the Guildmaster's chamber, mumbling something about "sleepless whelps". Aria ran forward to keep up with his strides.

They finally arrived at Flygon's chamber. The wooden door that separated the room from the rest of the guild was framed in light that made Aria's eyes ache. Krokorok ignored her discomfort and opened the door.

The room was brightly lit by two large tiki torches. Guildmaster Flygon was hovering a few inches off the mossy ground, which was covered with a woven mat. A pile of straw was shoved into the corner, and a few treasure chests and burlap sacks were piled near the back.

In the middle of the room was the same Totodile from earlier. He was awake but still looked like a zombie; his head was hanging down and his arms were limp. His mouth was slightly agape, and his eyes were closed.

Flygon seemed to be whispering something to him, but Aria couldn't make out the words. She was quite confused—why would the Guildmaster want her in here?

"See? Here they are now!" Flygon put in.

The Totodile looked up at the new arrivals. Looking closely, Aria could see dark bags under his eyes. When he spotted the Skitty, his head rolled up, letting out a sigh.

"Ugh… Seriously? A pink cat?" he moaned.

Aria was shocked and disgraced. Her tail twitched angrily and her eyes narrowed. She bared her fangs and prepared to pounce.

_I'm gonna teach you a lesson, mister… You're gonna pay for saying that!_

Krokorok grabbed her tail, and Aria realized she was slowly stalking towards the Totodile. Although his claws dug into her fragile skin, she was grateful that he had stopped her. Although she was angry at the Totodile, she didn't want to go so far as to hurt him.

"I don't know what this 'exploration team' is, but I do not want to be part of this. Especially if my 'partner' is a frilly pink cat… Ooh, I hope you don't get your fur wet, little kitty…" the Totodile said grouchily.

"Don't be so mean, Jay!" Flygon cried.

"Just because I'm a 'frilly pink cat' doesn't mean I can't kick butt!" Aria added.

Jay pouted but didn't continue to bully Aria.

"Good… Now, this is Aria. Aria, this is Jay. Jay was once a human, but somehow, he turned into a Pokém—" Flygon began.

"Don't tell her about that!" Jay cried. "Nobody needs to know that I'm different!"

"—he turned into a Pokémon. We don't know why, but we have a feeling that we could get some leads if he becomes part of an exploration team…" Flygon continued, smiling at Aria.

Jay deflated. He slumped forward again, clenching his teeth tight together. He looked resentful at the Guildmaster—like he was barely resisting the urge to bite her. But beneath the anger was fear and sadness.

Jay found himself on the edge of tears. It was like everything was going wrong for him… Now some stupid Technicolor cat knew that he was once a human. He imagined himself being made fun of, being referred to as "the human-turned-Pokémon" like he was an attraction at a zoo.

_No…_

Aria was the exact opposite of Jay. At the words "exploration team", she had jumped up into the air and let out a squeal of happiness. She had dreamed of becoming an explorer ever since she had enrolled in the guild, but nobody was willing to be her partner. Now she could finally be a true explorer… even if her partner was a bit grouchy.

"Yes! Yes! Yes! I can finally become an explorer!" Aria squeaked.

Jay covered his ears and squeezed his eyes shut, trying not to reveal emotion as the Skitty celebrated. He felt like taking a nosedive into the river again, letting himself be washed away. Anything was better than this…

"Hey… What's wrong?"

Jay looked up and was surprised to find Aria right next to him, concern in her squinty eyes. He then realized he had been silently crying.

He wiped a tear away from his eyes and tried to think of a rebuke to say, but he was at a loss for words. As he stared at Aria's face, all his anger melted away, leaving only sadness.

"I just wanna go home," he said simply. He could barely choke out the words, as his sadness had left him with a cough. It was true: he did want to go home, wherever home was. He wanted to escape this cruel world and go back home and live a normal life, free from strange creatures and distractions like guilds and exploration teams.

Aria patted his shoulder. The gesture was quite unexpected, and Jay found himself jerk away at her touch. But then he stopped, realizing that all he wanted was for someone to care about him.

Looking at Aria's concerned face, he realized that even though she had only said a few sentences to him, she truly cared about him.

"I understand. I totally know how you feel. Ever since that day, I've wanted to go home too…" she said, patting him on the shoulder.

"What do you mean?" Jay asked as he wiped tears from his eyes and sniffed.

Aria looked surprised. She put her paw over her mouth and turned red, and Jay had the idea that she was hiding something from him.

_Big surprise… everyone's hiding something from me…_

"It's… nothing. I'll tell you later," Aria said hastily.

"What do you say? Would you like to become an explorer with Aria?" Flygon asked.

Three pairs of eyes stared intently at Jay. He began to sweat, threatening to crack under the pressure. It was amazing that only a few minutes ago, he was angry at Aria just because she was pink. Now he was sad—although it didn't seem like much, Aria was his best friend in the mad world he was stuck in.

He pondered his decisions. He could refuse and spend his life roaming the unfamiliar land, looking for solutions. He didn't have any place to sleep, no stable roof over his head, no reliable source of food and water. And who knows what other dangers could await him in the outside world?

Or he could join a team with a mood-swinging Skitty. Earlier, Flygon explained to him that they were in an explorer guild—budding explorers would stay with her until they graduated. Every day, he'd get breakfast and dinner, and he'd have a comfortable place to sleep at night. He'd be able to make friends with the apprentices, and he'd be able to search for answers with a reliable buddy on his side.

Even though "exploring" didn't sound like his thing, he had made up his mind.

"I'm in."

What happened next was unexpected for everybody; Aria tackled him over and began licking his face like an excited dog. "Oh—thank you! Thank you thank you thank you thank you _thank you! _You don't know how long I've been looking forward to this—I've wanted to form an exploration team for so long, but I've never been able to find a partner, and now that you're here, I can finally do it! We can find treasure and become famous and bring you back home and—"

"Okay… Okay, Aria, I get it," Jay said, swatting at the Skitty with his hands. "Seriously—get off. I'm only doing this because I get a stable roof over my head, okay?"

Aria finally got off Jay. Her face was flushed with an excitement Jay had never thought was possible. She still looked like she wanted to hug Jay.

"Well, now that that's settled…" Flygon put in, "you'll need a few things to start off. Aria already has a fairly-stocked Explorer Bag, so you've got that… You'll need your Explorer Badges and a team name… oh, and I have a few extra goodies just for you…"

Flygon turned around to a wooden chest and began rummaging through it, murmuring to herself on occasion. Krokorok lingered near the back of the room like a barely-visible shadow, and Aria was bouncing in place and cheering excitedly.

"What should our team name be? I want it to be something cool! Something that reflects us and what we do! Something that everybody will remember when we become famous!" Aria said happily.

Jay didn't respond right away; he honestly had no idea what to name their team.

He tried to think of a good idea for the team, but the best idea he could come up with was "Team Weirdos"… and he didn't think Aria would like that one.

Meanwhile, Aria was rattling off ideas, and Jay had to admit that most of them sounded pretty cool. But his new partner didn't seem to be satisfied.

"Hmm… Team Chompy? No, I've heard that before… Team Torrent? Nah, I want it to reflect both of us… How about Team Bubbles?" she asked.  
>"Team Bubbles sounds like a kid's little league soccer team…" Jay replied sourly.<p>

"So that's a no?" Aria asked.

"Yes. No. Whatever. Let's just think of another team name," Jay said.

A few minutes passed without avail; Aria didn't seem to be satisfied with any of her ideas, and Jay couldn't even think of anything creative. Flygon and Krokorok were starting to look impatient; Krokorok started to nod off, yawning and laying his head down on the wall before snapping up again with a snort. Although there were no windows, Jay could surmise that it was rather late at night.

"Team Chew Toy? No—too silly… Hmmm… Something with 'river'…" Aria mumbled.

Suddenly, the Skitty gasped, an apparent revelation sparking her. "Ooh! I got it! Team River Song!" she cried triumphantly.

"'River Song'?" Jay echoed.

"Yeah! You're a Water type Pokémon and you've got water abilities and stuff, and I can sing really well! So Team River Song!" Aria said, jumping up and down in place.

Jay was confused as to what she meant by "Water type", but he couldn't deny that it sounded like a decent team name.

"What're you giving me that look for? Do you have any other bright ideas?" Aria cried. Jay realized a bit too late that he was giving her a confused look that seemed to tell her that he was absolutely disinterested.

"Sorry, sorry… just lost in thought… anyway, that sounds like a cool team name. It's definitely original," Jay said, giving his partner a toothy grin.

"So Team River Song?" Flygon asked.

"Yep!" Aria replied giddily.

Flygon smiled. "Great! From now on, you will be known as Team River Song. I know you'll do great in your explorations ahead!" she said.

Aria squealed in delight, and she looked like she was ready to hug Jay. Jay backed up, worried that she might start licking his face again. He felt a smile on his face and was rather surprised; he felt as though he hadn't smiled in years.

"Now that you're officially an exploration team, you guys will be able to access parts of the guild that you couldn't access before. But it's much too late now—you'll get the full tour tomorrow morning. Don't worry; your first day will be a breeze!" Flygon said happily.

"Ooh, I can't wait for tomorrow! Finally… my dream's coming true! I can't wait to go out and explore and get big rewards and stuff…! It's gonna be so much fun!" Aria cried.

"Yeah… But honestly, I just wanna go to sleep," Jay said, yawning.

"But before you go, I'd like to give you some things that'll help you tomorrow…"

Flygon held out her clawed hands, and within her hands, Jay could see two bandanas, one blue and one red. She also held a small sky blue fruit that could probably be swallowed in one bite. Jay's stomach rumbled, and he only then realized that he hadn't eaten since his transformation.

"Ooh! What are these?" Aria asked as she picked up the red bandana.

"They just like normal ol' bandanas to me," Jay said.

"They may not look like anything special, but they can really help you in your adventures. The red bandana is a Power Band, and it increases your attack power. So if you got into a battle, you'd be able to defeat your enemies faster!" Flygon explained.

"Wait. What? You didn't tell me we had to fight anything!" Jay gasped. He didn't feel like he could handle fighting others—at least, not now. Not when he was still trying to get used to having a giant maw and tiny hands.

"Oh, don't worry. Battling comes easy to most Pokémon. Little Aria's done it, and she hasn't shown signs of wear!" Flygon reassured the Totodile.

Despite her calming words, a sense of dread fluttered in Jay's stomach.

"And the other one?" Aria prompted.

"A Special Band. Sometimes, physical attacking isn't a Pokémon's strong point—some Pokémon use other methods of attacking. Some can breathe fire, while others can use their minds to attack… Jay, you can use Water type attacks, if I am not mistaken," Flygon said.

"What's all this 'type' stuff? And why am I a Water type?" Jay asked, now thoroughly confused by all this talk about "types".

"Every Pokémon has a specific type. It's kind of like an… identity. It affects what attacks we can use, our abilities, and our strengths and weaknesses in battle. I'm a Normal type, which means I'm not really that special…" Aria said, looking down at her feet.

"Cheer up. You're plenty special!" Flygon said to the Skitty.

"It'll all make sense tomorrow when you're out in the field. Let's not waste any energy talking about moves and types," Krokorok said.

"And the berry is an Oran Berry. If you're tired or injured, pop one of these guys in, and you'll be good as new in no time!" Flygon explained, holding out the berry.

Jay took the small blue berry in his hands and turned it around. It didn't look like anything special; in fact, it looked like nothing more than a light snack.

Aria took the bandanas and handed them to Jay, who held onto them and turned them around in his hands. Like the Oran Berry, the bandanas didn't look very special. They were slightly tattered and rather dusty.

"And Aria has the Explorer Bag, where you'll keep your items and treasure… I'd say you're all set! Now all you need is a good night's sleep and you'll be ready to face the world tomorrow!" Flygon said perkily. "Aria will show you to your quarters. You'll be sharing a room, but don't worry; you won't have to share beds. And Aria doesn't snore," the Guildmaster added.

Jay was relieved. It would be rather awkward to share a bed with a complete stranger.

"Good night, Guildmaster! I'll see you tomorrow!" Aria said.

"Good night, Team River Song," Flygon said with a smile.

Aria led Jay out of the room and into the world beyond.

It took Jay a moment to get used to the darkness of the guild, but when he did, he was shocked. The entire complex was an underground maze with sprawling tunnels and branching pathways. Wall-mounted torches lit the rooms, but their fire was low. The air was cool and the grass was soft beneath his feet.

_I've gotta admit: these guys are smart. I mean, humans have a hard enough time building stuff, and these guys don't even have cranes and bulldozers to help them… _Jay thought absently as he stared at his surroundings.

"C'mon, slowpoke! You were complaining about being tired just a second ago!" Aria cried.

It was then that Jay realized that he was staring at the wall as if it was the most interesting thing in the world. Which it wasn't.

Jay scurried after Aria, eager to finally find a comfortable place to sleep. After the crazy events of his first day of his new life, he was exhausted and could think of nothing but a bed.

Much to his surprise, he found that his "bed" was nothing more than a pile of straw that Aria hastily fashioned out of her bed, which was also a pile of straw.

"Ugh… That's it? A lousy pile of straw?" Jay grumbled.

"This is what we have. Everyone sleeps on a pile of straw. It's either this or sleeping on the cold hard ground…" Aria said as she curled onto her bed.

Jay grumbled his complaints but sat down on his "bed", and much to his surprise and joy, it was a very comfortable place to sleep. It was a bit itchy, but as he piled straw onto his body, it felt like he was sleeping in a pile of sand.

"Good night, Jay… See you for our first day of exploration!" Aria said.

Jay didn't respond. He was too busy thinking of his predicament to bid good night to Aria.

_So in the span of one day, I've been knocked out in a river, woken up as some sort of weird crocodile thing, befriended some frilly pink cat, and now I've been roped into some sort of weird exploration team thing… It has been quite a day…_

But despite the thoughts bouncing around in his head, he decided that he could save his pondering for tomorrow. He needed a good night's rest, and it wouldn't come if he was busy thinking about his hectic day.

_I may as well give this "explorers" thing a chance… You never know. This could be the key to unlocking the secret to my past… _

Jay resolved to not think about his dilemma any more. For now, he needed to focus on sleeping.

He closed his eyes and curled up on his bed, putting his buzzing mind to rest. Sleep came easier than he expected, and in only a few minutes, he had fallen asleep in his bed of straw.

XxX

**I really need to stop watching_ Doctor Who_.** **Team River Song? Ugh... I need to stop making pointless references to other franchises. But I digress.**

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Don't forget to review!**


	5. The Guild and Her Crew

**Hey, guys! Sorry for the lateness; had a lot of stuff going on. Hopefully I'll be able to update by Christmas day. I'm on winter break (WOOT) and so I'll be able to commit more time to writing. Yay~**

**But enough about that. Let's get to the story! I've got an extra long chapter for y'all, and I hope you like it!**

Chapter 5: The Guild and Her Crew

"Good morning, my friends! Today's a new day! Get out of bed and give a hip, hip hooray!"

The sweet singsong voice brought Jay out of his dreamless slumber. He rubbed his eyes and groaned, glad that he was finally out of his incredibly weird dream.

_It's my mom… she's trying to wake me up… I'm safe in bed, I haven't drowned, and I haven't turned into a weird blue crocodile… _Jay reassured himself.

"Wakey wakey, sleepyheads! Get yourselves out of your beds!"

It was the singsong voice again. It seemed to be getting more irritated. Jay groaned, wishing his mom wasn't so insistent on waking him up. He just wanted five more minutes… it was the summer time, and he deserved to sleep in…

"If you continue to doze and sleep, surely others will start to weep!"

Jay felt a hand on his shoulder, shaking him asleep. He groaned and opened his eyes, blinking the sleep out of his face. Everything was blurry and his eyes could barely stay open.

He blinked hard and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, and when he lifted his eyelids, his vision had been cleared. Much to his surprise and confusion, he saw the face of a pink cat hovering above him, and he knew at once that his dream was still not over.

"Urgh… Do I have to? I'm tired!" Jay grumbled, hiding his disappointment under grouchiness. He still wasn't used to his new life as a Totodile, and the sight of Aria still surprised him.

"Of course! You don't wanna miss the first day on the job, do you?" Aria asked.

"I don't even get a day to rest?" Jay groaned.

"Nope! If you come back from your mission early enough, you can have some downtime at the guild. But not now! We've got to get up, up, up so we can eat breakfast and do our daily cheer!"

This was the unfamiliar voice, the one that had sang him awake. It was distinctly female and sounded like a slightly lower-pitched Aria.

Jay groaned and sat up, rubbing his head and blinking hard. His room hadn't changed a bit, other than the fact that Aria had woken up. He got off his bed of straw and mumbled his complaints, but he abruptly stopped when he saw what was standing in front of him.

Its main body was light blue and looked like some sort of bird, with a long neck, a beak, a long tail, and claws. It was floating a few inches off the ground. Its wings were covered in a fluffy white cotton.

"Who are you and why are you covered in fluff?" Jay asked.

"I'm Altaria, the guild's alarm clock! I wake up the other apprentices by singing sweet songs! And I'm guessing you're the new apprentice Flygon told us about?" Altaria asked.

"Yeah! He's my partner now. We're officially an exploration team!" Aria squealed.

"Oh, congratulations! I knew you'd become great explorers someday!" Altaria said happily. She floated forward, a smile on her face, and before Jay could do anything, she enveloped the team in a huge hug.

Once he got over the shock of suddenly being smothered, he smiled. Altaria's fluffy wings were soft and warm. It reminded him of being wrapped in warm sheets—or being wrapped in a motherly hug.

Altaria finally backed off. "Wow… I'm so proud of you!" she said.

"Thanks!" Aria said, puffing her chest up proudly.

"Anyway, I'll be off. The other guild members are still snoozing away, and we can't have them sleeping on the job, can we?" Before she left, Altaria patted Aria on the head and beamed at Jay. "See you two at breakfast!"

Jay turned to Aria, who was still looking incredibly proud of herself. "She sure was friendly with you…" he noted.

"Yeah. Altaria's a really good friend of mine. When I first came here, she took me under her wing… literally. She seems to be especially fond of hugs…" Aria smiled. Jay found himself smiling back.

"So she sings to wake us up? Sounds more like she'd sing us back to sleep…" Jay noted.

"Yeah… If you don't wake up, she'll eventually resort to screaming in your ear, which is no fun, but hopefully we'll never get to that… hopefully," Aria said. She looked around, her tail twitching nervously. "Anyway, we should get going. The Guildmaster doesn't like it when we're late to breakfast."

Aria skipped to the tunnel that led away from their room, but before she started down the hallway, she stopped herself. "Oh! I almost forgot…"

She turned around and walked back to her straw bed, ignoring the confused look Jay was giving her. Next to her bed was a burlap bag with a long leather sash. Jay hadn't noticed it last night—in the dim light, he had assumed it was just a rock.

"This is an Explorer Bag. We need it to store treasure and items. We won't get very far without it, especially not on our first day…" she explained.

Jay picked up the bag, turning it over in his hands. It was rather light and was torn in a few places, but it still looked relatively new. He could feel round objects in the bag and hear slight jingles—was it possible that Aria had money in the bag?

"What are you waiting for? Put it on! You're the leader now, so you get to wear the Explorer Bag. Plus, I can't really pick it up myself… I've always needed help putting it on my shoulders…" Aria said.

"Wait… Who said I was the leader? You know this place like the back of your hand! You should be the one leading us around!" Jay protested.

"Please don't loiter, because if you do, Guildmaster Flygon will punish you!"

Altaria's singing voice filtered down the hall. It was obvious that she was talking to Team River Song, as nobody else could be seen in the hall. Aria nervously glanced down the hall and at her feet, but then she looked back up.

"We'll worry about that later. For now, let's just go!" she said.

For once, Jay didn't argue with his new partner. As she raced down the hall, he followed her, the Explorer Bag swinging at his side.

On their way to the main room, Jay noticed that the torches had been rekindled, so they shone brighter than last night, when they only dimly glowed. It seemed to simulate daylight, as there were no windows to tell what time it was.

_I wonder who's in charge of keeping these things going…_

Jay looked around and saw that there were several side rooms. In each room, two or three Pokémon were waking up to Altaria's songs. They eyed Jay with some interest, but Jay averted his eyes, not wanting to make a fuss.

"And here we are! The main room!" Aria announced.

Jay looked up from the ground and looked around. They were in a very tall room; the ceiling was at least seven feet tall. There was a ladder that was going up; presumably to a higher level. To the right of the ladder was a wooden door that led to the Guildmaster's chamber.

To the left of the ladder, another hallway branched off into a long, narrow room. In the light of the torches, Jay could see a wooden table built in the center of the room. Several Pokémon, including Krokorok and Flygon, were sitting down around the table, eating apples or berries.

"That's the mess hall," Aria said. "Every day, we get breakfast and dinner, unless we're bad… Trust me, you do not want to anger the Guildmaster. She may seem nice, but if we're super bad, she'll take your dinner privileges away for a week!"

Jay's stomach rumbled, and he figured that he would not anger Flygon. He hadn't eaten since he appeared in the world, and he did not want to miss out on a single meal.

"Oh man… I am starving!" he said ravenously.

"Well, what are you waiting for? C'mon in!" Aria said, dashing towards the mess hall.

Jay ran over to her, walking as fast as he could with his heavy head and lanky feet. He was still getting used to walking, but he didn't mind. As he got closer to the mess hall, he could smell the sweet scent of apples.

He almost stumbled as he plodded into the room, but he quickly regained his footing. He smiled a sheepish grin as he looked at the other Pokémon.

Other than Flygon, Krokorok, and Aria, most of the Pokémon took a while to recognize. There was a small dinosaur-like creature with a domed head and short arms who was shoveling food into its mouth. A pale red Pokémon sat near the end of the table, glancing nervously from side to side. It had small arms and a vaguely humanoid appearance.

He was rather intimidated by the prospect of meeting new Pokémon; he had barely known Aria for a day and now he had to meet others. Before either of the Pokémon could speak, Jay's mind made a connection: the dinosaur was named Cranidos and the red creature was named Magby.

"'Ey! Who's the newbie over there with Miss Aria?" Cranidos barked.

"That's Jay. He's a new apprentice. He's formed an exploration team with Aria," Krokorok said shortly as he scarfed down an apple.

"We'll have a proper introduction ceremony after breakfast. It's always exciting to get a new Pokémon in the guild!" Flygon said, clapping her hands together.

Cranidos laughed, his chuckle a harsh, rough bark. "Heh. Look at him. Looks like he can barely walk!" he sneered.

Jay felt rage course through his body when he heard this statement. He wanted to attack Cranidos, bite his head off, do something to teach him not to sass him. Aria looked the same way—although her eyes were squinted, Jay could practically see anger flaring up in them.

Jay stalked over to the dinosaur, his hands in fists. "You take that back, mister," he said threateningly. "It looks like you've got a pretty hard head, but if I get my chompers on you, I'm not sure it'll hold up for long…" he said, baring his sharp teeth.

Cranidos faltered, flinching at the idea of being assaulted by Jay. He quickly regained his attitude, his mouth curling into a frown. "Sorry. Just didn't get a good rest last night… Someone kept on waking me up," he said with a bit less venom.

Krokorok suddenly became incredibly interested by his plate of food. He didn't meet Cranidos's eyes.

"I'm not really a bad guy, ya know. Just get a bit grumpy when someone disturbs my sleep. Sorry." He smiled, offering his hand to Jay. "It's always nice to meet a new face 'round these parts. I hope we can be friends someday."

Jay shook his hand, but he still felt angry at how Cranidos had insulted him. He smiled as he found truth to his insult; he _could_ barely walk.

_Gah… I'll never get over having a giant head._

"You can sit over there by Magby. He's the newest member of the crew—er, second newest member. He's a bit strange, but real nice. And he doesn't get cranky if ya wake him up," Cranidos said, gesturing to Magby.

Magby did look a bit strange; he was cowering in his seat, nibbling on a pink berry. His eyes widened as Jay and Aria approached him.

Jay sat down next to the small Pokémon, and Aria sat down next to Jay. In front of Jay was a plate of apples and berries. His stomach rumbled as he looked at the colorful assortment.

"Chow time!" he said to himself.

He grabbed a pink berry and shoved it into his mouth, barely bothering to chew. The berry tasted sweet, and the pulpy juices ran down his throat and into his stomach. Eager for more, he grabbed another berry and shoved it into his mouth.

The berries were surprisingly filling, and after only a few bites, his stomach was no longer rumbling for food. They all had their own unique flavor—the pink berries on his plate were sweet, while the red berries were spicy. The yellow berries were sour, the baby blue berries were bitter, and the apples were tart and juicy.

"I guess you weren't very hungry…" Aria said with a smile. She had barely made a dent in her fruit salad, but Jay had almost finished his plate.

"Not anymore," Jay said as he wiped his mouth.

"I'm so glad you like our spread! You'll need the full belly if you want to have a good time exploring," Flygon said happily.

Jay frowned. He had been so distracted by eating that he had almost forgotten that the day had just begun. He still had a long day ahead of him…

"Don't worry… The first day's the hardest, buy far… It'll only get easier from here," Magby piped up.

Jay turned his attention to his neighbor. He hadn't paid him any mind; he was so busy eating that he had barely noticed his fellow apprentice.

"Thanks for the reassurances, Magby. I must say… I'm still kind of nervous about exploring. I mean, isn't it dangerous out there?" Jay said, trying to make conversation with the small Pokémon.

"Oh, it is pretty dangerous, especially to me… but it's also fun, if you get right down to it! You'll be able to see all sorts of cool places, you can help Pokémon, you can find all sorts of treasure… Trust me, exploring is awesome!" Magby said.

"Yeah! And it's even more fun with a partner," Aria said, smiling at Jay.

"Well, to be honest, I kind of envy you… I've always wanted to be a part of an exploration team… I don't like to be alone, especially when I'm out exploring in the wild…" Magby said, turning a berry around in his hand.

"I'm sure someone'll want to become an explorer someday. I just know it!" Aria said, patting Magby on his head.

Jay looked around, familiarizing himself with the other Pokémon around him. Altaria was floating next to a Whimsicott, who was a large cotton ball with a brown body and happy face. Two small yellow Pokémon were chatting excitedly, and Jay recognized them as Plusle and Minun.

On the far end of the table was a quadruped Pokémon with a long horn. It was a light blue, but when Jay looked close enough, he could see what looked like sparkles on its skin. He recognized it as a Nidorino, but somehow, he knew that Nidorinos weren't supposed to be blue…

The Pokémon ate and ate, and as they gradually cleared off their plates, they began to file out of the room. Magby eventually ate his last berry and smiled, leaving the room with a happy "See you guys later!"  
>"So what do we do when we're finished eating?" Jay asked.<p>

"We go to the main room and do our daily cheer. If there are any announcements to make, Flygon or Krokorok will make them. But today's a special day—whenever there are new members, we do an initiation ceremony. It's nothing big… we just do a cheer, introduce ourselves… it's really cool," Aria explained as she finished off her apple.

Jay's stomach churned at the idea of being presented and called out in front of an audience. The pleasantly cool room suddenly seemed to heat up. He could almost see all the eyes watching him, hanging onto every word…

"C'mon! Let's go! They're waiting for us!" Aria said, placing the apple core on the plate. She dashed off to the entrance to the mess hall and ran into the main room, cheering for Jay to follow.

The Totodile had to gain his composure before he followed her. He didn't want anyone to know about his past and his time as a human… He had a feeling that he'd be teased and poked and prodded and laughed at, like some sort of animal at a zoo…

_Relax. It's gonna be fine. I'll just tell Flygon to not present me as a human-turned-Pokémon…_

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, trying not to think about the Pokémon waiting outside. Ignoring the fluttering in his stomach, he walked to the main room and rejoined Aria.

The Pokémon were gathered in the center of the room, milling around and talking amongst themselves. Flygon and Krokorok were at the front of the crowd, talking quietly to themselves. Upon seeing Jay next to Aria, Flygon perked up and smiled.

"May I have your attention please?" Flygon said, clearing her throat and winking at Jay.

The talking stopped, and all eyes fell on the Guildmaster and her assistant. Jay swallowed hard and tried not to look scared.

Once the last of the chattering died down, Flygon continued. "Thank you! Now, before we do our daily cheer, I have a very special announcement to make!" she said.

Aria nudged Jay, and when the Totodile looked at her, he found that she was beaming, her pointed teeth shining. He tried to return the smile, but he felt more awkward than happy.

"Now, as some of you already know, a new member has enrolled in our fine guild. It is truly an honor to have him choose this guild out of all the other guilds out there… Jay the Totodile! Can you please come up here?" Flygon said, raising her voice as she completed her sentence.

"That's your cue!" Aria said, pushing Jay forward. He yelped and stumbled as the crowd parted in front of him. There were a few snickers as Jay tried to regain his footing, but Jay didn't stop; he waddled up to Flygon, ignoring the stares he was getting from everyone else.

He made his way up to the dragon, who greeted him with a smile and a wink. He turned around to face the crowd and swallowed hard… _everyone was staring at him._

He could feel sweat starting to drip down on his forehead. His breathing shortened and his hands became fidgety; his heart began to hammer, faster and faster as his eyes widened. The faces of the crowd were not aggressive; rather curious, in fact, but Jay still felt like he was getting silently judged by his fellow apprentices.

"Jay is rather new to this region, so I hope you'll all give him a warm welcome and answer his questions if he has any. I can tell he'll be a great explorer someday!" Flygon said.

Jay cringed, half-expecting the guild members to burst out into laughter as they saw him acting like such a fool. He bit down in anxiety, accidentally opening small wounds in his lip, but the tiny stabs of pain were nothing compared to the writhing of his stomach…

The silence seemed to drag on for eternity. Jay was almost certain that everyone was about to boo him away from the guild… but then they started cheering.

He opened his eyes and scanned the crowd, quite shocked by their sudden outburst. Magby was jumping up and down near the back, chanting Jay's name. Plusle and Minun were twirling around, clapping their hands and sending out sparks as they did so. Even Cranidos was clapping.

Jay's heart soared. He hadn't expected such a warm reaction from such a foreign crowd. But looking at all the smiling faces of the guild's apprentices, he found himself smiling too.

Once the cheering died down, Flygon continued with her announcements.

"However, Jay is not an ordinary apprentice of mine. He has had the fortune of meeting Aria the Skitty, who is quite skilled in explorations. After a brief talk with me and Krokorok, they have finally reached an agreement: they want to form an exploration team!"

More cheers from the audience. Aria skipped up to the front of the crowd and stood by Jay, smiling and blowing kisses and overall being a bit hammy. Even Krokorok was clapping, although it looked like rather grudging.

_What's this guy's deal? He's really cranky for some reason… _Jay thought.

But he found it hard to focus on the one less-than-happy Pokémon. He turned to the smiling crowd and finally began to enjoy his time in the limelight.

Before he knew it, the cheering had died down and the crowd was growing restless. Flygon murmured something to Krokorok, and he nodded, climbing up the ladder.

"Jay and Aria are now Team River Song, and I can tell they will perform admirably with their daily tasks!" Flygon completed.

A few more cheers erupted from the audience, but Jay could tell that the crowd was getting impatient. This was especially so with Cranidos, who seemed to be on the edge of screaming. He paced in place and looked rather irritated, shooting Flygon a nasty glance.

"That is all in the way of announcements… Before I dismiss you, let's sing our daily cheer!" Flygon beamed.

Cranidos groaned, but the rest of the guild happily took up cheer.

"At Flygon's Guild, we are all friends! We'll work and play up to our ends! We're brave and strong and faithful too; three cheers for us! Woo woo woo!" the guild chorused.

As Jay didn't know the words to the chant, he did nothing but watch in mild amusement. It was hard to take Cranidos seriously when he was singing about being friends with everyone; although he looked a bit embarrassed, he didn't look angry or resentful.

"Now, here's to another great day of exploring!" Flygon cheered.

"WOOHOO!" the guild cried.

The assembly broke up. Pokémon began to mill around; some climbed up the ladder, while others talked idly to each other. Magby waved with one hand as he climbed up the ladder, and Aria waved back, cheekily grinning.

Jay exhaled, feeling as though a weight had been lifted off his chest. It had certainly gone better than expected; he hadn't embarrassed himself in front of the whole guild. And, of course, he was eternally grateful to Flygon for not mentioning his time as a human.

But there was still a strange feeling nagging at him… it felt like he had swallowed a live snake that was wriggling inside his stomach. He felt queasy and rather dizzy, but he couldn't pinpoint why.

"Whoa there, boy. Don't fall down on me. I may be strong, but I don't think I can hold you if you fell… Especially after eating all those berries," Aria said teasingly.

"Hey! Are you calling me fat?!" Jay cried indignantly. He tried to intimidate Aria by looking down on her, but he felt the weight of his long snout pulling down on him, and he nearly fell over. Aria giggled.

"Lighten up, man. Take a joke! I'm not calling you fat. If you want fat, go on down to the Snorlax Guild… Now, those guys are fat!" Aria said.

Jay was about to respond with a witty comment, but before he could, Flygon flew in between the two bantering teammates.

"C'mon, Team River Song! There's no time for chitchat! There's exploring to be done! We need to show Jay around this place, and we need to find you a suitable job. You can talk later!" she said.

"Yes! We didn't sign up as explorers just so we can sit around and talk! Let's get going!" Aria said, bouncing up and down as she thought about her first day as a member of an exploration team.

Jay's stomach dropped. In the past hour, he had almost gotten into a fight with Cranidos and flipped out about embarrassing himself in front of the guild. And he hadn't even begun exploring.

_This is going to be a long day…_

"Follow me, Jay. We'll give you a complete tour of our wonderful guild!" Flygon said, hovering by the ladder. Aria scampered towards the ladder, bobbing in excitement and gesturing for him to join them.

"Oh, okay…" he mumbled.

He walked to the ladder, which looked rather unstable. It was nothing more than a long pole stuck in the ground with wooden rungs tied at regular intervals. Jay shuddered; he did not want to lose his balance and fall down.

"Don't worry if it looks unstable. It's perfectly safe! Just don't let go and you'll be fine!" Aria said, noticing Jay's reluctance to climb the ladder.

As if to prove her point, she began the climb, putting one paw in front of the other as she scaled the rungs of the ladder. Jay took a moment to collect himself and followed suit, watching her tail dangle just above his head. He had a strange urge to swat at it, but he didn't want to let go of the rungs of the ladder. Plus, Aria probably wouldn't like it.

The ladder was actually fairly short, and in only a minute, they had arrived on the first sublevel.

The first level was smaller than the second one, with no hallways or side rooms. Another ladder had been built next to the ladder leading down. Jay could see sunlight streaming in from above.

Aside from Aria and Flygon, many other Pokémon bustled about, talking to each other or doing jobs. Magby was igniting the torches that were mounted on the wall; he would take a deep breath, and when he exhaled, a small stream of embers flew from his mouth. When the embers hit the torches, they would bloom to life and light up the room.

"This is the first floor. While it isn't as big as our living quarters downstairs, it is just as important," Flygon explained.

She turned to her right and gestured for her apprentices to follow her. Jay rounded the corner and found htat the Guildmaster was looking at a corkboard on the wall. Many notes had been tacked up on the corkboard; on some, the writing was too messy to read, but others were legible.

"What's this?" Jay asked.

"This is the Job Board. If a Pokémon needs help, they can write a request for an explorer to help them. Every day, our apprentices take these tasks on. It's really quite beneficial to both sides: apprentices can learn the ins and outs of exploring while helping others," Flygon explained.

Jay got on his tiptoes and began skimming over the jobs. They were all more or less the same: some Pokémon had lost an item and required help, while others were looking for a lost friend. Some just wanted to explore.

"So you're saying that our training is taking these jobs?" Jay asked dubiously.

"Unless you have other tasks to do around the guild, yes," Flygon explained.

"Yeah, it's not as fun as looking for hidden treasure, but if we're helping others…" Aria said.

_Helping… This job is all about helping other Pokémon…_

He had been nervous about exploring ever since he had first woken up to Altaria's song. He thought that he and Aria were going to look for buried treasure or explore uncharted areas… While that wasn't necessarily his cup of tea, it certainly sounded better than _helping._

_Honestly… These guys must be lazier than lazy. They need an exploration team to help them find their own stuff?! Why can't they get off their butts and do it themselves?!_

"Exactly!" Flygon said, interrupting Jay's pessimistic thoughts. "What you guys are doing is very brave. Not all Pokémon are willing to venture into mystery dungeons alone…" she mused.

"Great… another foreign word. What's a mystery dungeon?" Jay grumbled.

Aria shot a sideways glance at Flygon, who nodded curtly. Aria turned back to Jay and took a deep breath, and the Totodile prepared for a lengthy explanation.

"I'm gonna explain this in one go, so listen up… Mystery dungeons are weird places. They're different every time you enter them, so it's hard to make a secure map of them. Some may have natural dangers, like lava or dangerous terrain, but the real threat are the wild Pokémon there. They could attack you, but you can retaliate back. Sometimes, you can find items or treasure in dungeons, but they're very rare…" Aria said.

Jay's head spun, having to take in so much information in so little time. He could understand that mystery dungeons changed and that they were very confusing places… but what was all this about attacking wild Pokémon? And how would he retaliate in case of an attack—would he bite them?

"You look a bit confused there, buddy. Don't worry. It's hard for anyone to explain mystery dungeons. It's easier to just get out there and see them for yourself," Flygon said with a smile.

"Yeah! So what are we waiting for? Let's pick a job and get out there!" Aria said, hopping up and down with excitement.

She began to peruse the board, looking for a suitable job, but Flygon interrupted her by putting a clawed hand in front of her. "I think I should pick a job for you… I just don't want Jay to be overwhelmed on the first day. Nothing against either of you…" she said.

"Oh… I understand…" Aria said, though she looked rather sad that she couldn't choose.

"Well, enough loitering around. Let's get you guys a job!" Flygon said cheerily.

XxX

**I wanted to model Flygon's Guild after Wigglytuff's Guild, so if you're having trouble imagining what the guild looks like, just think of Wigglytuff's Guild-BUT WITH FLYGON!**

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Don't forget to review! And if I don't get to updating before the 25th, merry Christmas! (Or happy Hanukkah, or whatever else you celebrate. Hope your holidays are great!)**


	6. First Day on the Job

**Merry ****late**** Christmas! (Or Hanukkah, or whatever else you celebrate.) I hope your holidays were as great as mine were!**

**I am super sorry for this late chapter; had a lot of stuff going on. But better late than never-here I am again with another chapter! I hope you like it!**

Chapter 6: First Day on the Job

"'To anyone who may read this… Help! My friend, Fletchling, has gone missing! I remember we were both playing by Sage Forest, but then… she was gone! She's been missing for about three days, and I'm super worried! Please, help find Fletchling! I'll give you a hefty reward if you do! From, Clefairy.'"

Flygon read the note aloud, her eyes scanning the yellowed paper as she spoke. Jay couldn't hide his worry—he was still uncertain about the whole "exploring" business. He could feel his heart race as Flygon concluded.

Aria, on the other hand, looked almost bored. Her eager smile had faded into a frown, and she sighed, her tail drooping low to the ground.

"We're exploring Sage Forest? Oh, gee, that'll be fun. I've only been there _forty times this month_!" Aria hissed, her eyes narrowing.

"Aria! Don't be so disrespectful! Jay still needs to learn how to explore, and Sage Forest seems like a good place for him to start. There's more to an exploration team than you!" Flygon said, wagging a finger at the Skitty.

Jay felt himself flush; he didn't want to be called out as a weakling. It was true that he didn't know his way around the Pokémon world, but he didn't want that fact to be broadcasted to everyone in the guild.

"If you want more of a challenge, you can go explore Mt. Rumble. That'll _definitely _be challenging…" Flygon continued.

Aria paled and shuddered in place. "No," she said flatly. "Just… no."

"What's wrong with Mt. Rumble?" Jay asked.

"That's just it… we don't know. Supposedly, there's treasure on the top of the mountain… but it's guarded by a fierce beast. And the Pokémon that roam the rocky mountainside are nothing to sneeze at either… Even the most talented explorers can't hike up it without getting a beating!" Aria explained.

Flygon shot Jay's partner a glare, and she ceased her talking.

"I'm sorry I brought that up. I don't want to scare you on the first day…" Flygon apologized.

"Oh, it's fine," Jay said.

Even though he seemed rather nonchalant about it, his heart was racing and his eyes widened. _Treasure? That sounds so much more like an explorer! Maybe someday we'll find that treasure and get rich and famous…_

"Let's get back to business. I think this is a great job for you guys. All you have to do is find Fletchling—you'll recognize her when you see her. And Sage Forest isn't a very challenging mystery dungeon. You'll be fine!" Flygon said.

"And we'll get a reward—Poké!" Aria added.

Jay opened his mouth to inquire what Poké was, but Aria quickly answered before he could even say anything. "Poké is money. We use it to buy stuff. That's what's making up most of the weight in your bag," she explained.

Jay patted his bag and heard something jangle; he assumed this was the Poké. It was true that his bag seemed heavy, but not so much that it was weighing him down.

He couldn't help but wonder where he'd have to pay money… was there a shop or something around here? So far, he hadn't seen anything outside of the guild… And if there was a shop, what would it sell? Berries?

Fearing a sarcastic answer would be the reply he got, he avoided asking that question. Instead, he asked a simpler question: "How much Poké are we talking about here?"

"Let's see…" Flygon consulted the note, narrowing her eyes as she scanned the letters. "It looks like Clefairy is willing to pay up to 2,000 Poké for this job…" she replied.

"Whoa!" Jay's eyes lit up at the prospect of that much money. Although he didn't know much about the currency of this world, he could imply that 2,000 Poké would buy a lot. "That's a lot of money!" he said.

"Yeah… but we'll only get 200 Poké. The guild takes away 90 percent of our earnings… something about funding this place," Aria explained solemnly.

Jay slumped forward, his euphoria leaving him like air from a broken balloon. "Only 200 Poké?" he asked quietly.

"I'm very sorry… but how else would we keep this place up and running?" Flygon said.

Jay tried to glare at her, but he just sighed. There was no point in trying to argue out of this; he could tell Flygon wouldn't change her mind.

"Yeah. Especially in these times. Why, just a few weeks ago, a massive storm blew in and nearly tore the roof off! And there was that earthquake last year… and the Pokérus outbreak…" Flygon continued, her voice growing more somber as she spoke.

"The what?" Jay asked.

"Oh… never mind. Just talking to myself… The point is, we need money to keep a stable roof over your heads. Surely you understand…" Flygon said, though the misty look in her eyes indicated that her mind was somewhere else.

Jay wanted to know more about these events—he had no idea that there had been an earthquake. And what was this "Pokérus" outbreak Flygon spoke of?

_I wish someone would give me a straight answer for once…_

"I understand…" Jay replied, though he couldn't hide his grudging frown from the Guildmaster.

"Aria will help you if you have any more questions or concerns in the field. Exploring is rather tricky at first, but once you get out there and go for it, you'll find that it's almost second nature!" Flygon said, noticing Jay's apprehensive face.

"You can count on us, Guildmaster!" Aria said happily.

"Yeah…" Jay said unenthusiastically. He still wasn't entirely on board with the idea of exploring—although finding treasure did hold a certain thrill, he knew that they wouldn't get any treasure hunting missions for quite a while.

"Cheer up, Mr. Grumpypants! It'll be fun. A nice stroll through a sunny forest… what could possibly go wrong?" Aria said, shaking him on the shoulder to try and shake him out of his slump.

"That's what everyone says before something goes terribly wrong…" Jay mumbled.

"Let's just go," Aria said flatly. She began climbing up before Jay could say anything in response. In a few moments, her body had disappeared up the ladder.

He gave one last look to Flygon, who smiled and nodded encouragingly. Realizing that he had to follow his partner, he shuffled to the ladder and began to climb up it.

Sunlight shone in his face as he neared the top, and he had to resist the urge to close his eyes as he continued to scale the ladder. He grabbed onto the next rung and tried not to shake too much—he was still uncertain about climbing these peculiar structures. But despite his nervousness, he managed to reach the top of the ladder with fairly little trouble.

As he pulled himself up to the top floor, Jay had to take a moment for his eyes to adjust to the sun that was streaming in. He realized with faint surprise that he had never seen the sun—he had spent all his time in the dark guild belowground with only torches to light the way.

He set his feet on the ground and groaned, rubbing his eyes and blinking hard. Once the black spots had vanished from his eyesight, he got a good look at his new surroundings.

He was in a tent made of dark wool that blocked out most of the sunlight. The wool was decorated with strange, colorful patterns. The ground was made of hard, packed dirt with a few weeds poking up.

Aria was standing by a large opening near the front of the tent. Beyond the opening, Jay could see rolling hills covered in tall, green grass. In the distance, he could see a few trees poking up from the ground. The cloudless sky was bright blue and the sun was a white-hot ball.

Jay was strangely mesmerized by the serene view of the outside world. He could vaguely remember the world of humans—it was so industrialized, so gray compared to the world beyond the guild. Even the air seemed cleaner and easier to breathe.

"About time! You're really slow, you know," Aria said. Her voice snapped Jay out of his trance and brought him back to the present.

"Sorry. I was just trying not to fall down and hit my head on the ground. Please forgive me, Princess Aria," Jay retorted.

Aria sighed. "Whatever. We won't get anything accomplished if we just sit here and bicker. Let's go," she said.

Jay didn't have any qualms with this. He was starting to sweat under the heat of the sun and the heavy tent. He found this quite odd—it was only morning, yet the sun was searing hot.

Aria pranced out of the tent, her tail held high. Jay followed her, accidentally stubbing his toe on a pebble as he did so. He cursed but quickly regained his composure.

The sun was even hotter outside; indeed, it felt like he was burning to a crisp. Though the ground was soft and cool, he still felt like he was melting. Aria also seemed to be struggling under the heat, though perhaps not as much.

"Ugh… here we go again…" she mumbled.

"What?" Jay asked.

"The weather's been really out of whack lately. Some days, it's burning hot, while some days, it's pouring rain. It's weird. And pretty painful. It feels like I've got a huge blanket on. I'm burning up here!" Aria explained.

"Same here. I feel like my blood's boiling," Jay admitted.

"I feel ya, man. Maybe we'll stop by the river on our way back. The water there is especially refreshing," Aria said.

"No!" Jay said quickly. He did not want another near-fatal drowning accident… he had barely mastered walking; he wasn't sure if he even had the muscle tone for swimming.

"Yeah, you're right… We've got a job to do! Fletchling's out there all alone, and surely she's feeling the heat too! We need to rescue her!" Aria said, looking forward to the rolling hills.

Jay grunted in agreement, glad that Aria didn't ask about his brusque "no".

She began to trot forward again, but she didn't get too far before she whirled around to face Jay again. "Oh! I can't believe I almost forgot!" she cried.

The Totodile sighed. "What is it now?" he asked.

"Do you remember last night, when Flygon gave us those bandanas? We should equip them now. It'll free up some space in our bag, and let's face it: we'll look cooler with bandanas tied around our necks," Aria said.

Jay had almost forgotten about Flygon's gifts from the night before, but in the daylight, he suddenly remembered the Power Band and the Special Band the Guildmaster had gifted them. She had said they would be useful in the field… he could only hope she was true.

He fished the bandanas out of his Explorer Bag, and after a quick discussion with his partner, the two had suited up for exploration. Aria had received the red Power Band—he had to help her tie it around her neck—while he had the blue Special Band.

Aria struck a pose and grinned, her tail held up in the air. "Sweet! I feel stronger already!" she said happily.

Jay was mildly surprised to find that she was right; upon tying the bandana around his neck, he found that he felt slightly less duck-footed. His head didn't seem as heavy and he moved with ease. He felt like he could run a mile and back.

"And we've even got Explorer Badges—see that little white thing?" Aria pointed out.

Twisting his head, he found that a small, barely-visible white badge had been tacked on his scarf. He hadn't noticed it when he had first put his bandana on, but now it seemed more prominent than ever.

"Only exploration teams get these. When we've completed a mission, we can just tap these badges and teleport right back to the guild! Very nice shortcut, if I do say so myself," Aria explained.

"That's freaky," Jay said, wondering how such a tiny badge could teleport them all the way back to the guild just by touch.

"I'm not complaining. Normal explorers have to walk back to the guild at night… can you imagine that? You've completed a super difficult mission, and you have to walk to get back home?! No thanks!" Aria rambled.

Jay wiped his brow and sighed as he looked up. The sun was blazing brighter than ever, and the heat was really starting to get to him. A dip in the river suddenly didn't seem so bad.

"Let's just get going. It's crazy hot here, and I want to get this over with as soon as possible!" Jay said.

"Ah… yes. Sorry…" Aria smiled sheepishly. "Sage Forest is just up ahead. Just keep walking; you'll see it in no time! Lead on!"

Jay still didn't feel comfortable being the leader, but he was so anxious to get going that he didn't even bother to argue.

He took the lead and began walking forward, feeling the ground steadily rise up below him. Although the hill wasn't particularly tall, each step seemed more painful than the last. He was breathless in only a few moments.

His partner, on the other hand, was just fine. Even though she had said she was hot earlier, she certainly wasn't showing it. Even though she was walking, she seemed so much faster than Jay was.

"C'mon, slowpoke! You can do better than that!" Aria said as she danced ahead.

Jay didn't respond; he was channeling all his energy into putting one foot in front of the other. He was wheezing and out of breath by the time he crested the hill.

When he reached the top of the hill, he couldn't help but be amazed by what was sprawling out below him.

A massive forest spread for what seemed like miles. Trees of varying heights sprouted from the green grass, their leaves rustling slightly in the warm breeze. A few yards downhill, a gurgling stream snaked across the grass. Reeds and cattails grew in profuse on the riverbanks.

Jay began the climb down the hill without a word to Aria, who was drifting a few feet behind him. He could only assume the trees were Sage Forest; based on the vague directions he had been given, this was his destination. Going downhill was a lot easier than hiking up; gravity assisted in his descent, and when he reached the river, he almost felt relaxed.

Almost.

The river was no more than a few inches deep, but to him, it felt like several miles deep. He still held a small phobia of water and rivers, which he thought was ridiculous—how could he drown in a few inches of water?

Something caught his eye. A few feet away, he noticed that the reeds had been moved. The growth of reeds had been parted and somewhat flattened, like something had once been resting there.

"Don't look so nervous, dude! The water's only a few inches deep. C'mon!"

Jay snapped out of his thoughts and found that Aria had skipped across the river. She was curled up by a patch of reeds and licked her paws, which were rather wet from bouncing across the stream.

He took a deep breath, looking at the crystalline water. It was so clear that he could see every tiny pebble resting under the water's surface. The soft gurgle of the current put him at ease.

_What the heck? I may as well…_

He stepped into the water and quickly realized that he had been all worked up about nothing. The stream was very cold and stung a bit, but it was still a great difference from the blazing sun above. A sudden burst of energy shot through his body, and he felt like he could jump up and do a flip.

"See? There's nothing to worry about. Now, hurry up and get out of the water! We've got exploring to do!" Aria said.

Jay grinned sheepishly and made his way to the opposite side, the slight current posing no problem to him. He pulled himself to shore and shook the water off his body. He cracked his knuckles and smiled; this time a real smile.

"Whoo! That was cool!" Jay cheered.

"I'm sure it was," Aria said.

Jay wanted to jump back into the stream again; the sun was starting to burn him again. But Sage Forest was so close… surely the shade of the countless trees would provide some relief from the sun…

Before he knew it, he was streaking down the hill like there was a fire behind him. He felt… excited. Exploring finally meant something to him. He didn't know what it was, but he felt truly glad to be part of an exploration team.

Aria raced alongside him, her tiny legs working hard to propel her forward. She grinned, showing her sharp teeth.

"That's the spirit, tiger!" she cried.

The two explorers broke into the forest, and as Jay hoped, the canopy above provided welcome relief. The trees were of varying height, but most of them were much taller than Jay. A few shrubs poked up from the ground, and he could vaguely hear the gurgle of a stream and the chirrup of birds.

Jay slowed down to a jog; his burst of energy was starting to wear off. A cramp was starting to form in his side, and walking became painful again. Aria screeched to a stop beside him.

"Alright. So far, we haven't met any wild Pokémon… I can't say I'm surprised. Only a few Pokémon live around here, and most of them aren't violent unless you disturb their homes. There are a couple of weirdos, but for the most part, there's nothing to be afraid of," Aria said.

"But what would I do if we did meet a wild Pokémon? I don't want to kill anyone," Jay said, his voice tinged with concern.

"Pokémon attacks are actually rarely deadly. There are a few powerful ones that can kill you, and if a group of angry Pokémon attacked us, we'd be pretty much dead… but not here. That sort of stuff only happens when you become big and famous," Aria said.

"Right…"

Jay was still apprehensive about battling, but as it turned out, he didn't have to worry about anything. They didn't meet any hostile Pokémon; in fact, the only Pokémon they saw was a Pidgey flittering around in the canopy. It looked like it was minding its own business, so Aria and Jay left it alone.

"Maybe tomorrow we'll come here so you can practice your moves on someone. Maybe you can beat up a bush or something…" Aria mused as the Pidgey flitted away.

About an hour passed, and the forest was still deceptively calm. The only sounds that could be heard were the twitter of bird Pokémon and the crunch of leaves beneath their own feet. Occasionally, Aria would suddenly sit completely still and perk up her ears, but she'd quickly resume her quiet walking.

"What are you doing that for?" Jay asked.

"Oh… it's nothing. I keep thinking I hear that Fletchling calling, but it's just my imagination…"

Aria averted her gaze, and Jay felt an all-too-familiar feeing descend upon him: the feeling that his partner was hiding something from him.

"You can tell me anything, you know," he pressed.

"You're right… For example, I can tell you that there's nothing bothering me, and I can tell you to shut up, and I can tell you that if you don't shut up, I'm gonna chase you up a tree and take away your Explorer Badge," Aria retorted.

Jay put his hands up in the air, shocked by the sudden shift in mood. "Sorry… Just curious."

"Curiosity killed the cat… or in this case, the Totodile," Aria replied. She gave him a teasing smile and twitched her tail back and forth. Jay decided to let the subject drop.

Another half hour passed with no conversation and no sign of Fletchling. Jay found that they had accidentally doubled back on a path they had taken earlier. One time, they spent ten minutes following a rustling noise, thinking it was Fletchling… just to find a clueless Rattata foraging in the scrubs.

"Ugh… This is taking forever! Why won't that stupid Fletchling just come out?!" Jay complained aloud.

Suddenly, a gray and red blur shot past Jay's face, letting loose a shrill cry as it did so. There was a chirp, a rustle, and another sharp cry, then the forest went silent.

Aria slapped herself on the head, letting loose a long and painful sigh. "Great job, genius."

"What? What did I do?" Jay asked.

"That was a Fletchling… and you scared it off! If you say something like that, they're gonna think you're a kidnapper!" Aria cried indignantly.

"I didn't know Fletchling was right there!" Jay responded, holding his hands up in defense.

Aria suddenly perked up, resuming the stiff posture. Her tail twitched nervously and her ears swiveled. Jay listened carefully but could not figure out what was so interesting. All he heard was the trill of a bird—possibly Fletchling.

"No… no no no no no… please, dear Arceus no…" Aria breathed.

Confusion began to set in on Jay, but on top of that, fear. He didn't know why Aria was acting this way, but he could tell that whatever had her on edge was not good…

"Did I really mess up that badly?" he asked cautiously.

"Yes. No. I don't care. We've got much bigger problems… If they see her… oh Arceus, why? This is the first day on the job…!" Aria said, though it was clear that she wasn't paying that much attention to her partner.

"Can you please tell me what you're going on about?!" Jay demanded.

"I promise, I'll tell you everything later. But we've gotta go now. Fletchling's in trouble!" Aria said urgently as she paced back and forth.

She darted away, vanishing into the green bushes.

Jay began to wrestle with emotions: confusion, anger, and most prominently, fear. Aria was a pretty brave Pokémon from what he had seen; if something had gotten her spooked, he was in no hurry to meet it.

_Oh, just stuff it. Who said being an explorer was gonna be easy? _Jay chided himself.

He slapped himself across the face and shook his head, putting on his battle face and preparing to meet whatever was beyond the bushes. Then he dove in after Aria.

XxX

**And that's a wrap, folks! Sorry if Aria's behavior is a bit weird, with her licking her paws and stuff. I'm trying to model her behavior after real life cats. So if she starts licking her paws or chasing her tail, don't be surprised... my cats do it all the time!**

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Don't forget to review!**


	7. Haxorus's Guild

**HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYBODY! I hope 2015 is treating you all well! And if it isn't going so good for you, well... you've got 360 days to turn it around!**

**My new year's resolution? This year, I'm gonna resolve to update this thing faster... I just hope I can stick to it. Yeah...**

**Anyway, enough blabber. I'm sure you're all ready to see my first chapter posted in 2015. And here it is!**

Chapter 7: Haxorus's Guild

Jay wasn't as lithe as Aria, and when he tried to run through the bush, he ended up falling flat on his face. He grunted and pushed himself off the ground as he spit a leaf out of his mouth. When he got to his feet again, he pushed through the shrub and found Aria hiding.

She was holed up behind a tall bush, her ears perked up and her tail low. She peered through the leaves and grumbled something to herself; though Jay couldn't hear it, he was sure that it wasn't a very nice word.

"What are you hiding from?" Jay asked.

Aria's head snapped back with surprising speed. Though her eyes were narrowed and her fangs were bared, her face was pale and sweat was coating her forehead.

"Shush! You're gonna alert them!" she hissed.

"Who?" he asked.

"Get down and don't say another word. I'll explain everything later, I promise. But now we've gotta rescue Fletchling," Aria whispered.

"What are you—"

"SHUSH!" Aria whispered as loud as she dared. "Get down!"

Jay figured it was no use prying answers from her; from what little she had told him, Fletchling was in trouble. He didn't want to jeopardize the success of their first mission, so he obeyed her and got down on his belly.

He crawled forward, trying to make as little sound as possible. The rocks and leaves on the forest floor dragged across his belly, but he kept his complaints to himself as he crawled next to Aria.

"Look through the bush… you'll see it," she whispered.

"Um… okay," Jay whispered. He was still uncertain about the whole thing, but he followed her orders and squinted his eyes, looking through the leaves and twigs.

His jaw dropped when he saw what was on the other side.

A huge building made of stone and metal was built in a clearing of the forest. It was more of a castle than anything, and it was much larger than even Flygon's Guild. Two spires were climbing up from the ground. A rough iron portcullis barred entry to the mysterious castle.

It looked rather run down; a few cracks were breaking through the walls and the spire on the right looked ready to collapse. However, despite the deformities in the building, it still looked inhabitable and relatively new.

But the strangest thing about the castle wasn't even visible. The building seemed to emit a strange, eerie aura, like a haunted house. Jay felt a shiver go down his spine as he stuttered to form a word.

"What the—what is that?!" Jay gasped once he had regained his ability to speak.

"Haxorus's Guild," Aria whispered.  
>"There are other guilds?" Jay asked.<p>

"Of course! Did you really think Flygon's Guild was the center of the universe?" Aria snapped.

"Sorry!" Jay replied.

"Never mind," Aria whispered.

She inched forward, narrowing her eyes and keeping her back low to the ground. She looked through the bushes and cursed, not pleased with what she saw.

"Fletchling's right there! Oh no, this isn't good…" Aria said, her voice bordering on panic.

"What's so bad about Haxorus's Guild? I mean, it looks kinda intimidating, but…" Jay said.

"Not all guilds are nice and fluffy and full of smiles. Some of 'em are guilds of criminals. They spend all their time training thieves and outlaws… and this is one of them," Aria said shortly.

Jay was mildly surprised; although he knew there were bound to be criminals in the world, he hadn't expected entire _guilds _dedicated to training crooks. As he stared at the guild, he couldn't help but think of beehives: festering colonies full of creatures that could kill you in minutes.

"But wait… you said Fletchling's there?" Jay asked.

"Just look!" Aria hissed.

Surprised by her ferocity, Jay peered through the shrubbery. He could barely see the small outline of a gray and orange bird pecking at the ground. He recognized it as a Fletchling.

Fletchling looked like she had been through a lot. Even from a distance, Jay could see that she was out of breath. Lacerations dotted her body, and one of her wings was bent at a funny angle.

Jay felt a tinge of sadness in his heart. Fletchling looked so young, so powerless, like a child that had lost her mother. Outlined against the massive castle, she looked even more pathetic. He wanted to go out there, pick her up, tell her everything was going to be okay…

"If Fletchling stays out there for much longer, the Pokémon inside are bound to notice her. And they aren't the ones to take you in and nurse you back to health… ooh, what do we do?" Aria said, grinding her teeth in frustration.

"Why don't we just go out there and grab her?" Jay asked.

"Yeah… no. _You_ were the one who scared her away. If you start coming at her, she'll fly away for sure! Plus, you might be noticed…" Aria said.

Jay hesitated. "That's a good point… but what else are we going to do?" he responded.

"Get her over here! Duh!" Aria said.

Jay sighed, feeling stupid that he hadn't thought about that earlier. It was a lot less risky than charging in head-on…

"But how?" he asked.

"Like this!"

Aria stood up, peeking her head over the bush. "Psst!" she whispered.

Fletchling turned around, looking rather alarmed by the mystery voice. "Wah! W-who's there?! I-I'm not afraid of you!" Her voice was rather squeaky and tremulous, possibly owing to her youth and fear.

"Don't worry, Fletchling. I'm a friend!" Aria assured her.

The tiny bird hopped back a few inches. She stared into Aria's eyes, still looking quite fearful. "My mama told me to never talk to strangers!" she squeaked.

"We're here to help you, though! We don't wanna hurt you!" Aria said sincerely.

Fletchling tilted her head in curiosity.

"We're explorers from Flygon's Guild. Your friend, Clefairy… She told us you got lost here, and we wanted to help her! We're gonna take you home… all you need to do is come here. We'll help you," Aria said.

Fletchling got a strange look in her eyes at the mention of Clefairy. Jay grinned inwardly; he could tell that the mention of her friend was enough to win her over.

_Finally… we're almost done with this stinking mission! I'm hungry._

"C-Clefairy?" Fletchling squeaked. "M-my friend is looking for… me?"

"Yes. If you just come here, we can take you out of here! We could take you back home… Clefairy is worried sick about you!" Aria said.

Fletchling looked at the group for a few tense seconds. She looked at the various cuts on her body, wincing in pain as she tried to move her bent wing. She glanced back at Haxorus's Guild and shook her head, and finally, she began to hop forward to the group.

Her movements were clunky and awkward, and as she neared the bush, Aria climbed across and knelt down on the ground. Fletchling hopped up her tail and onto her back, settling down behind her neck.

At this point, Jay decided to reveal himself, despite knowing that Fletchling would undoubtedly be terrified. Sure enough, as he emerged from behind the bush, the young bird let loose a shrill chirp and nearly toppled off Aria's back.

"Wah! You're the meanie from earlier! Get away from me, meanie-pants!" Fletchling cried.

"Hey, kid…" Jay approached the trembling creature and ignored the harsh look he received from Aria. "I'm really sorry for scaring you earlier. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings at all… I'm with her. I wanna help you get home," he said.

Fletchling still looked terrified, but less so as Jay held out his hand for a high-five. "I won't ever be mean to you again. I promise."

After a moment's hesitation, she held out her good wing and grinned, chirping a cheerful note. "It's okay. You're here to rescue me, and I'm super happy for that! Thank you soooo much!"

Jay slapped her feathered wing, taking care to not hit her too hard. The young bird hit his hand back with a bright grin on her face.

"Ahem!"

Aria cleared her throat after the two had finished high-fiving. "If you two are finished yakking it up, we've gotta get back to the guild! Clefairy's waiting for you, little one!" she said, looking at Fletchling with a smile.

"Oh! I can't wait to see Clefairy again! I was super scared when I lost her, you know! But now, when I get back, I can tell her all about my wonderful adventures out here! Ooh, I'm so glad you guys found me!" Fletchling squeaked.

Aria laughed. "It was our pleasure," she said.

"But I don't want to go all the way through the forest again…" Fletchling said.

"Good… because we won't!" Aria said, nodding at Jay's Explorer Badge.

He brought his hand up to his small white pin and touched it lightly with his finger. Aria did the same. Fletchling held on as tight as she could with her wings.

Before Jay could blink, a pillar of bright yellow light descended upon him. He squeezed his eyes shut, the glow temporarily blinding him. He let out a slight yelp as he felt his feet leave the solid ground, and then everything went black.

XxX

Haxorus sighed, shaking his head and pacing back and forth. He wiped a drop of sweat off his brow and had the sudden instinct to punch a wall.

"Gah… o' course she has ta have the final word. That 'lil hothead… I wish I could slice 'er arms off!" he grumbled. He kicked a pebble and watched it skitter across his spacious office.

He continued to sulk for a few minutes, grumbling curses under his breath and lashing out at the empty air around him. But he quickly regained his professional attitude when he heard a frantic knock on his door.

He sighed again, not wanting anything to do with his crazy apprentices. Best-case scenario, it would probably be Snover wondering where the bathrooms were…

"Sir! Sir! I need to speak with you!"

Much to Haxorus's relief, the voice did not belong to Snover, but instead belonged to Primeape, his second-in-command. Primeape was irritable and always ready to pick a battle, but that made him a very good fighter.

Haxorus opened the door, and sure enough, Primeape was there. He was pacing back and forth and looked incredibly anxious for something.

"What is it?" Haxorus demanded.

"It's terrible! Terrible, I tell you…" Primeape said breathlessly.

"Well?! What is it?!" Haxorus demanded, louder this time.

"Oh—! I'm sorry, sir. Forgive me…"

A harsh look from the Guildmaster silenced the hyper monkey immediately.

"Uh, yes… The guards say they've spotted her outside…" Primeape continued shiftily.

"Who're ya talking about?!" Haxorus demanded.

"Aria, sir! They said Aria was just outside our humble guild…" Primeape spat out.

Haxorus cursed. This bit of news did nothing to help his already sour mood. He wanted to lash out at Primeape, but he didn't for fear of enraging his assistant. He knew that wouldn't be a pretty sight.

"She gone?" he asked, his voice a deadly calm.

"Pardon?" Primeape asked.

"Is she gone?" Haxorus repeated, his voice rising in irritation.

"Yes. The guards say that she interacted with an injured Fletchling and eventually teleported back home… They also say that there was another Pokémon with her. A Totodile," Primeape said.

Haxorus growled but remained collected. "Did either o' them make any threats 'gainst us?" he asked.

"Er… no sir. Not that we know," Primeape said.

Haxorus didn't respond right away. His mouth began to twist into a deep frown, and Primeape felt a pang of worry. Although it wasn't in his nature to be afraid, he knew the Guildmaster could and would go crazy if displeased.

He attempted to subvert this with his next words: "It just burns me up to know that little brat is still out there! I would've thought she would be long gone by now…" He smiled awkwardly, and when Haxorus didn't smile back, he flinched away, knowing the worst was coming.

"Thank ya for that bit o' information. I'd 'preciate it if ya don't tell anyone else 'bout this. Don' wanna raise a panic. Jus' tell the guards… tell 'em that if they see anythin' funny, they need ta report it ta me. Good?" Haxorus said after a lengthy pause.

Primeape sighed in relief, glad that Haxorus wasn't going to punish him. "G-good," he replied.

Haxorus glared at him for a few seconds, and Primeape cowered in fear, worried that he was about to lash out at him. However, he didn't resort to violence and instead barked "Well?! Get out! Go tell 'em!"

Primeape squeaked and scrambled off, slamming the door behind him. It closed with a resounding boom that hurt the Guildmaster's eardrums.

Haxorus sighed again, tenderly rubbing his ears. "Gah… this day keeps on gettin' worse an' worse…" he mumbled.

XxX

Jay and Aria turned to the ladder and watched as Clefairy clambered down. She looked like a pink blob, but she certainly wasn't the strangest Pokémon Jay had seen. She clutched a small leather pouch in her left hand, and due to this, climbing down the ladder was a bit of a challenge.

She reached the bottom of the ladder, and before she could even turn around, Fletchling left Aria's side and fluttered towards her friend.

"Clefairy!" she chirped happily.

"Fletchling!" Clefairy cried.

The pink Pokémon grabbed Fletchling in her arms and gave her a big hug. When Fletchling broke free, she flew around her friend's head and eventually perched on her head. Clefairy looked up and smiled, not at all bothered by the bird's sharp talons.

"Glad to see you're back together again!" Aria said, grinning at the two youngsters.

"We wouldn't be here if it weren't for you, though!" Fletchling said.

"I just can't thank you enough! I—when Fletchling was gone, I couldn't sleep; I was too worried… but I can sleep soundly now that she's here again! I'm so happy… Thank you!" Clefairy gushed. She ended her sentence with a smile.

"I'm super glad I'm back! It was really boring out there all alone. It would've been so much better if you were there too!" Fletchling chirped.

Clefairy shook her head. "Ah… it's good to see you haven't changed," she said.

Flygon turned to Jay and Aria, a smile on her face. "You two did great! I told you it would be a good first day!" she congratulated.

Aria blushed. "Aw shucks… You're embarrassing me!" she said.

"Don't be so modest! You helped my friend… and that's all that matters! An act like that definitely deserves a reward!" Clefairy said.

She handed Jay the pouch she had been holding onto. He could hear the jangle of coins, and he smiled, knowing this was their promised reward. He eagerly reached out, but before he could grab it, Flygon intercepted.

"Ahem… I'll just be taking this," she said, holding out her hands.

Jay was at first confused—why would the Guildmaster take their reward? But then he remembered: the guild would take ninety percent of their earnings to keep up with funding.

Clefairy looked rather flustered, but she gave Flygon the pouch. She flashed an apologetic smile at Team River Song, shrugging. Aria nodded and gave her a tight grin.

Flygon began to dig around in the bag, and after a few moments, she fished out a small handful of coins and presented it to Jay. "Here you go—200 Poké. Once again, I'm sorry I had to take most of your reward away; you truly did a good job, but…" she said.

"It's okay. As long as I have a nice roof over my head, I'm fine!" Aria piped.

"Yeah," Jay agreed, though he was still somewhat resentful.

"Anyway, we've gotta go. We have a lot of catching up to do! Thanks again for your help, and have a good day!" Clefairy said.

"Ooh, yes! I've gotta tell you all about my adventures in Sage Forest! It was really scary at first, and it was still really scary, but then when they rescued me, I was all like, 'Woo hoo!' But before then, I was all 'oh, I hope Clefairy hasn't forgotten about me', and then—oh, there was this really scary castle, and then I was almost attacked by a Caterpie, and then—" Fletchling began to go off on a tangent, but she was swiftly interrupted by Clefairy.

"Let's get you back home. I'm sure your mother is very worried about you," she put in.

"Oh! Of course!" Fletchling beamed at the exploration team. Jay grinned back, hoping that his sharp teeth didn't look too intimidating. The young bird didn't seem scared by Jay's maw any more. "Bye, guys! See you around!"

Fletchling flew up the hole and perched on the top rung of the ladder while Clefairy struggled to climb up. But in a few moments, the two had left the guild.

"Great job, you guys!" Flygon said once Clefairy and Fletchling were gone. "I can tell you're gonna grow up to be great… I mean, it's only the first day and you've already figured out the tricks of the trade!" she continued.

"Thank you, Guildmaster," Aria said with a nod.

"You're the ones I should be thanking. It just warms my heart when I see two Pokémon reunited again…" Flygon said.

Jay shifted in place, feeling rather uncomfortable with the whole conversation. "Er… sorry to interrupt, but what do we do when we come back from our exploration?" he asked.

"Well, if you get back early enough, you'll have some free time before dinner. You can do pretty much whatever—wander around, talk with the others. Just stay within the guild," Flygon explained.

Jay looked around at all his fellow apprentices. Some were milling around, others were talking quietly amongst themselves. He watched as Nidorino climbed down to the bottom floor, his blue skin glistening slightly in the torchlight, and he realized he hadn't even spoken to most of the apprentices.

"Great. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna be downstairs talking with the others… You coming, Aria?" Jay made his way to the ladder, beckoning for his partner to follow him.

"Ah… I'll be there in a little while. I… just want to talk to the Guildmaster about something… You go right ahead. Don't wait for me," Aria said. Her gaze fell to the floor and she pawed nervously in place.

Jay sighed. "I wish you wouldn't be so secretive," he grumbled.

"I wish you wouldn't be so grouchy," Aria retorted.

"I wish you weren't so—"

"STOP!"

Before Jay could respond with an equally snarky comment, the Guildmaster interrupted them with a demanding cry. The other Pokémon wandering around stopped in their tracks and looked to Flygon, their eyes wide. Flygon dismissed them with a wave of her hand, but she continued to eye Team River Song with a fierce look.

"If there's one thing I can't stand, it's arguments among team members. Communication is a very important part of being in a team, and if you guys are always arguing, you'll never get far in life," Flygon said, her voice firm but holding a kinder edge.

Aria looked down, her eyes holding great shame. Her cheeks colored and she struggled to breathe, and Jay realized that she was on the verge of tears.

"I'm… sorry… I don't… I didn't…" she choked, ending her sentence with a sniffle.

"You can tell Jay anything you tell me. Trust is also an essential part of being an explorer: you should be able to tell your teammates anything. You shouldn't be keeping secrets unless you absolutely need to," Flygon said.

Aria sniffed again, bringing up a paw to wipe her eyes. Jay patted her on the back, and even though his gesture was kind, she flinched away.

"I… I'm fine! I get it… thanks. I'm fine now. I-I'm okay…!" she said, though it was clear from her tone of voice that she wasn't okay at all.

Jay wanted to do more to help her. He wanted to give her a hug, dry her tears, do something so his partner wouldn't be so sad…

Just then, a warm feeling fluttered in his heart. It was something he had only felt once before: back when they were rescuing Fletchling from Sage Forest, he had felt it in his heart… He was not used to this feeling; just a day ago, he was completely shut off from the rest of the strange world.

_But now… I want—no, I _need _to help…_

He smiled to himself. _Maybe this will all turn out okay in the end._

"Well, now that we're past that… Aria, my dear, what was it that you'd like to tell me about?" Flygon said after a moment's pause.

"Oh… never mind. I don't want to worry you about something as silly as that…" She laughed sheepishly and faced the ground in embarrassment.

"Are you sure? You can tell me anything. I always have time for you," Flygon pressed.

Aria rubbed her stomach and looked around. "Oh, I'm really hungry. Exploring can really work up an appetite! Are you hungry, Jay?" she asked.

Even without her prompting, Jay would've agreed with her. He hadn't eaten anything since breakfast, even though he had a bag full of berries and apples. "I'm not hungry… I'm starving!" he said.

"Great, because I think dinner's almost ready! Let's go… I don't wanna miss it!" she said.

Aria didn't even turn around to say goodbye to the confused Guildmaster. She scrambled to the ladder, keeping her eyes averted.

Jay gave a confused look to Flygon, who simply sighed and shook her head. Then he followed his partner down the ladder, trying to ignore the tears dripping from her eyes.

XxX

**Bet you weren't expecting that, were you? Haxorus's Guild... what dark secrets lie in that place? Could it be Arcanine and his buddies? Could it be some other terrible criminals? Could it be that month-old sushi that we left in the fridge by accident?!**

**I guess we'll find out later!**

**Also, to those that are wondering... Team Aura and Team Blaze will be returning in this story. They may not be as involved as last time, but I can assure you that they will come back. And who knows? I may even bring back a few more familiar faces!**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Don't forget to review, and happy new year again!**


	8. Heart of Gold

**Hello again! I'm back. I'm sorry for taking so long; I must admit, I'm spending WAY too much time playing Smash Bros. Please tell me I'm not the only one...**

**But anyway, here's another chapter for you. Kind of a shorter chapter, but don't worry... the next chapter will be great, I promise!**

Chapter 8: Heart of Gold

Aria hustled to her room without glancing at any of the apprentices staring at her. Jay followed with swift footsteps as he wondered what was bothering his partner. He had an idea of what was wrong… but he didn't want to jump to any conclusions.

She ran to the back of the hallway and threw herself on her bed, burying her head in the straw. She let out a loud wail and sniffled, and she put her paws on her head as if it would block out the world.

Jay crouched down next to her and gently shook her shoulder. "Hey… What's bothering you?" he asked softly.

Aria looked up, and he was not surprised to find that she was crying. Her face was a cherry red and her tail hung low. Tears streamed down her face without any sign of stopping.

"Don't look! I-I… please don't… l-leave me!" Aria wailed.

"No. I'm not leaving you," he replied firmly.

"When d-did you get all… nice? For the past few days, you've been all g-grouchy!" Aria said.

"Look. I'm still confused and scared and overall upset that my head is bigger than my feet, but I still care. I don't know what happened or why I feel this way, but I'm not the Jay I used to be," he said.

"You've only been here for one day… There's no way you can make such a profound change in twenty-four hours!" Aria snapped.

"Like I said, I'm still getting used to things. Expect me to be a bit grouchy, but I'm absolutely not the grumpy old Totodile I was," Jay said.

Aria didn't respond right away. She wiped her eyes and sniffled hard, choking out a few more tears as she did so.

"C'mon. You can tell me what's wrong. I'm your partner," Jay said softly.

"But that's just it! I don't want to look like an idiot in front of you. I know you… you're a rough Pokémon. You tend to judge others by their behaviors, right? And I don't want you to think I'm stupid just because I say or do stuff that's stupid!" Aria gushed.

"I don't think you're stupid!" Jay replied.

"Oh? What about last night? You said you didn't like 'frilly pink cats' like me!" Aria snapped.

"That was last night!"

Jay paused and started to think. Had it really only been one night since he had turned into a Totodile? It seemed like it had happened centuries ago… had he really been a Pokémon for only one day?

_Wow. It's only been twenty-four hours, and already I'm starting to change… All this "love and kindness" junk is really starting to rub off on me. Should I be worried?_

"I'm sorry. I was upset and grumpy and I didn't know what was going on… If you woke up in a strange land full of strange creatures with no memory, you'd be a bit grouchy too," Jay said.

"Ugh…" Aria buried her head in the straw again, letting out another sob.

"Cheer up. I've only been here for a day, and I don't want to spend another second trying to make you feel better. You're not stupid, you're a great Pokémon, and you're not a coward. So calm down," Jay said brutally.

Aria looked up and spat a bit of straw from her mouth. Her face was still red, but her eyes were mostly dry. Though she looked surprised by Jay's shift in tone, she didn't look hurt.

"Ah… thanks, Jay. You're right; we can't spend all our time moping around. It wastes our energy, and really—do you want to see me sad? No. I don't think so," she said, wiping her damp face.

"That's the spirit," Jay said.

Before either of them could continue their conversation, a bell began to peal. Even though it wasn't very loud, the noise reverberated off the walls and magnified its sound tenfold.

"Dinner's ready! Get your butts in here!" Jay recognized the grouchy voice as Krokorok's low tones; he was not in the least bit thrilled to hear him again.

"That's one grumpy crocodile I _don't _want on my team," Aria said, giving Jay a playful shove.

"Hurry up, slowpokes! It's first come first serve, and anyone who doesn't show up will go hungry! Get a move on!" Krokorok said.

Jay got up from his crouching position and flung his Explorer Bag off his shoulder. He gave a sideways glance to Aria, who nodded slightly. He was about to make his way to the mess hall when Aria stopped him.

"Hey... uh, I just want to say..." She pawed nervously on the floor, her ears flattening against her head. "Well, it's a bit awkward, but, uh... thank you. Thanks for cheering me up, Jay. You... You're really nice, you know?"

Jay looked down at his feet as embarrassment coursed through him. He didn't know why he felt this way; he just... did. Maybe it was modesty, or maybe it was something else.

"I know, you can be a real grumpy-pants sometimes... and sometimes you're a bit insensitive... but... you... you have a heart of gold. I just know it," Aria completed.

Before Jay could respond, Krokorok screamed at the top of his lungs. "HEY! TEAM RIVER SONG! GET YOUR BUTTS IN HERE NOW!"

He smiled, feeling his stomach rumble. Without any further conversation, he turned around and sprinted down the hallway, Aria following jauntily behind.

XxX

Dinner was a very bright event. All their fellow apprentices were sharing stories about their days. Jay caught snippets of some conversations and could figure that most of the Pokémon here were very advanced.

They received congratulations from everyone in the room; even Krokorok stopped by to personally congratulate them on their first day, though he still couldn't hide his distaste for the explorers.  
>"Hopefully we won't have to hold your hands any longer after this…" Krokorok mumbled.<p>

Jay took the moment to reach out and get to know some of his apprentices better. Whimsicott and Altaria were an exploration team, and they dubbed themselves "Team Fluffy".

"We wanted to name ourselves 'Team Fluffle Puff', but we figured that was too long," Whimsicott said.

"But it's okay! You can't deny that Team Fluffy is a cute name too!" Altaria squealed.

Jay nodded and tried to smile, but it looked more grudging than anything. "Team Fluffy" was, in his opinion, a terrible name for a team, but he didn't say anything. Whimsicott and Altaria seemed like very nice Pokémon—and he couldn't deny that their team name certainly fit them.

Afterwards, he talked to the strange blue Nidorino. He seemed nice but rather sensitive about his skin color.

"I'm what folks call a 'shiny Pokémon'. Sometimes, a Pokémon will be born with a different skin color than normal. It's very rare," Nidorino said.

"You sound sad…" Jay said.

"Yeah… I came here because I was looking for acceptance. Nobody really wanted to be my friend; they just poked fun at me. They called me a freak. Seriously, do I look like a freak to you?" Nidorino said, looking down at his plate.

"I'm sure you're just as capable as any other Pokémon out there," Jay said.

Nidorino smiled. "That's got to be the nicest thing I've heard today. Thanks, bud," he said.

The rest of dinner passed by with little conversation; Jay was too busy eating to talk much. As he looked around at all the talking and laughing Pokémon, he felt… happy. It was like he was at home, surrounded by brothers and sisters. They were all nice in their own unique way.

Jay loved it. It was like he had finally home.

XxX

The first day at the guild was coming to an end. Someone had extinguished most of the torches, save for a few in the hallways. Pokémon were returning to their bedrooms, bidding each other good night.

Aria and Jay returned to their room and curled up on their beds, but despite Jay's exhaustion, he couldn't go to sleep. He just kept tossing and turning, occasionally letting out a small moan.

After about half an hour of restlessness, Aria finally spoke up.

"What's wrong? Can't get to sleep?" she whispered.

"Yeah…" Jay whispered. He tried to hide his mild surprise that Aria was still awake; the previous night, she had fallen asleep almost right away.

"Me too. I just can't stop thinking about Haxorus's Guild…" she replied.

_I thought so! Ever since we got out of that stupid forest, she's been all moody…_

"Oh yeah. That…" he prompted.

Aria turned over. "I'll tell you later!" she said.

"You said that earlier… and now's later. So can you please tell me?" he pressed.

"No!" Aria hissed as loud as she dared.

"It's not gonna do you any good to keep secrets. I know that all too well…"

He sighed and looked up at the ceiling, wondering if he should tell the guild about his human life. Although the guild members wouldn't tease him, he didn't want anyone worrying over him or going out of their way to help him.

He just wanted to be normal.

"Let's just say that Haxorus and I… we've had some questionable encounters. He wouldn't be too happy to see me again. Plus, why would you want to see a bunch of dirty criminals?! I heard they haven't washed up in ages," she said.

Her tone of voice told him that this conversation was over.

"Yeah… I get that. Sorry for being so pushy earlier," Jay said.

"Sorry for being so secretive. You're right; keeping secrets is never a good idea, especially if you're on a team with someone as stubborn as you," Aria said. Jay could just see a hint of a smile on her face.

He laughed lightly. "Heh… you're funny. I can tell we'll be a great exploration team, even if I'm all grumpy and you're all secretive," he said.

He waited for a response, but Aria had already fallen asleep on her bed of straw.

XxX

"Good morning, my friends! Today's a new day! Get out of bed and give a hip, hip hooray!"

Although Jay had only heard the voice a few times before, he instantly recognized it as Altaria's trilling voice. He smiled; she had a beautiful singing voice.

Jay yawned and struggled out of bed, ready to begin his second day as an explorer. Aria was already up and standing on her bed, stretching and twitching her tail. Altaria was standing in the doorway, looking very pleased as the explorers roused.

"Wonderful, friends! You're up real fast! Let's get to breakfast; that food won't last!" Altaria trilled, spinning in place and waving her fluffy arms.

"See you there, Altaria!" Aria said with a grin.

The bird twittered a few more notes and turned around, fluttering away to wake the other apprentices. Jay watched as she rounded a corner and began singing her song again.

"Good morning, Aria," he said, turning to his partner.

"Hey. Finally got to sleep, I see," Aria noted.

"Yeah. Kind of fitful, though… I could've sworn I had a dream about something, but I don't remember it now…" Jay said, rubbing his head.

"Ahh, that happens to me a lot. I hate it," Aria said.

"Are you feeling better?" Jay asked.

Aria twitched her tail nervously and her ears flattened, but she remained calm as she answered. "I'm fine. Thanks for helping me," she said.

"No problem. But keep in mind… I'm always here for you if you need someone to talk to," Jay said, looking rather uncomfortable as he did so. He still wasn't used to the whole "helping others" business and he wanted to do the best he could to help his friend… but he didn't want to sound creepy, either.

"Thanks." Aria turned to the tunnel leading into the main room, not looking into Jay's eyes as she did so. "Let's get going. I'm hungry!" she said.

She strutted down the tunnel, her tail held jauntily high. Jay grabbed his Explorer Bag and followed her, trying desperately to fit the strap over his large head.

XxX

Breakfast was nothing special. He conversed with a few more of his acquaintances; this time, he talked to Plusle and Minun. They revealed they were a part of a team, "Team Thunderwave", but they didn't do much exploring.

"We mainly just guard the guild from intruders and the like. If we see someone we don't know, we slam the door on them!" Plusle said perkily.

"And if things get really ugly, we fight… but we never like to hurt others!" Minun added.

As Jay finished his breakfast, he couldn't help but notice Flygon and Krokorok were eyeing him and Aria. They didn't seem upset or angry; they just seemed… curious. Occasionally, Flygon would whisper something to Krokorok, but her words couldn't be heard over the chatter of Pokémon.

Aria didn't notice them, or if she did, she just didn't care. But Jay found himself glancing to his side quite a bit and flinching away when he saw them staring at him.

Near the end of dinner, Krokorok left the room, giving one last glance to Aria, who was munching on a sky blue Rawst berry.

When everyone else was finished with their breakfast, they began to file out of the mess hall, returning to the main room to do their cheer. Jay and Aria followed suit, walking into the main room and lining up with their other apprentices.

Jay joined in with the cheer this time; though he still didn't know most of the words, he tried his best to mumble along. He tried to look happy and peppy, but he just didn't feel it—the chant was rather childish in his opinion, going on about friends and happiness and stuff.

"Okay, apprentices! You know what to do! Let's make this day a great one!" Flygon said after the Pokémon had finished their daily cheer.

"WOOHOO!" everyone chorused. Aria jumped up in the air and grinned her wide smile, showing off her sharp feline teeth.

After that, the other Pokémon dispersed to their jobs. Most of them climbed up the ladder, but Magby and Nidorino stayed behind. Cranidos gave Aria a wink as he climbed to the second floor. Aria retched.

"Ugh… That creep! I swear, he totally has a crush on me. I mean, I'm flattered, but still… yuck!" she said.

Jay couldn't really say anything on the matter, but all the same, he nodded.

"Ah, you two!"

Flygon had noticed the idling explorers and floated over to them, a wide smile on her face. "Hello again! How was breakfast?" she prompted.

"Pretty good. I feel ready to tackle whatever challenge we have!" Aria said.

"That's great!" Flygon smiled. Aria beamed back at her, while Jay's mouth tugged at a grin. "Oh, that reminds me… I'd like to ask a favor of you, if it wouldn't be too much trouble…" she added.

"Great… now we have to be your little errand runners," Jay mumbled under his breath.

"What was that?" Flygon's voice held an edge of warning. Aria flashed a dire look at him, and even though no words were spoken, Jay knew enough to keep his mouth shut.

Several tense moments passed, and he didn't speak a word. Eventually, Flygon's harsh glare relaxed. "Oh, I must be hearing things again. My apologies," she said lightly.

"So what do we have to do?" Aria prompted.

"It's simple, really. All you have to do is run to the Kecleon Shop and ask for a package—I ordered something from them a while ago, and it should be in by now. Plus, you'll get to give Jay a tour of Trader's Village!" Flygon explained.

"Trader's Village? What's that?" Jay asked.

"You'll see soon enough." Flygon winked. "Once you get back, you'll be able to go exploring. Sound like a plan?"

Jay wanted to protest, but before he could even open his mouth, Aria piped "Sounds great!" And before he knew it, he was being dragged up the ladder and out of the guild.

Jay figured it would be a simple task: get a package, return it to the Guildmaster, and go exploring. But as luck would have it, he couldn't have been more wrong.

XxX

**Cliffhanger! Oh noes!**

**Sorry if this chapter was a bit rushed, but I hope you like it, and don't forget to review!**


	9. Thievery and Retrieval

**Hey! Sorry this took so long; I had a lot of stuff to write down in this chapter. And I was sick... being sick is no fun, even though you get to sit in bed all day. Heh...**

**Anyway, enough blabbering; you want the chapter, don't you? Well, here it is. Enjoy!**

Chapter 9: Thievery and Retrieval

Aria led Jay to the very top floor. He grabbed the top rung of the ladder and pulled himself up, finding himself in the familiar tented area from before.

"So what's this 'Trader's Village' thing you keep talking about?" he asked.

"Well, it's not really a village. In fact, the region we're in is actually a relatively unpopulated area… there aren't really any villages or towns, just guilds," Aria explained.

"That didn't really answer my question," Jay said.

Aria sighed. "Just follow me. The village isn't too far away from the guild," she said.

She strutted out of the open door, her waving tail beckoning for Jay to follow. Jay sighed, still frustrated from her lack of clear answers, but he followed her all the same.

As soon as she got out of the dark tent, she turned around and began walking around the lone structure. Behind the guild, a low hill rose from the ground. The hill was dotted with wildflowers that seemed to form a path up the hill. Even from a distance, Jay could hear noises coming from the beyond the hill: unfamiliar voices talking and chattering.

Aria began walking towards the hill, and as she did, she continued to talk to Jay.

"We're actually at a very convenient location. Since this is one of the biggest guilds in the region, Pokémon flock from everywhere to do business with us. We have a few permanent settlements, but for the most part, Trader's Village is made of travelling Pokémon hoping to make a quick buck off us," she explained.

Jay nodded, feeling slightly less confused. He couldn't help but admire the social structure of the world of Pokémon—there were giant dragons and crocodiles running around, but they had devised a shop system complete with coins…

They rounded the crest of the hill, and Jay had to catch his breath when he saw what was below him.

About halfway down the hill, a cobblestone path led to a small plaza made of smoothed stone. Small buildings lined the inside of the circle; some were made of wood, while others were made of what appeared to be stone or even metal. Among some of these buildings were carts, complete with wooden wheels. Many tents had been built in the soft grass outside of the stone plaza.

Even from a distance, Jay could see many Pokémon walking around, occasionally stopping by a building. Laughter and voices rang in his ears, and he could feel a happy mood emanating from the plaza.

"That's Trader's Village," Aria said simply.

After Jay got over his mild shock, he led the way down the hill. All the while, Aria was blabbing on behind him. He didn't really pay attention, however.

"Most of the really important things are permanent settlements—the Kecleon Shop, the Kangaskhan Storage, and Weavile's Bank are some of them. If we have any extra items, we can store it in the Kangaskhan Storage, and if we have too much Poké, we can deposit it in the bank… but now, we're gonna go to the Kecleon Shop," she said.

"Seriously, you don't need to explain everything to me! I can work some things out on my own, you know. I'm not stupid!" Jay grumbled.

"Of course you aren't. You're Jay," Aria replied.

"Whatever." But Jay couldn't deny that he was thankful for her help, even if it was annoying.

They finally reached the plaza, and Jay could finally get a good look at some of the other Pokémon there. He recognized Whimsicott and Altaria, and they gestured to him with a friendly wave. A few other unfamiliar Pokémon walked around, but none of them seemed to notice him.

Jay could automatically tell what some buildings were, but he had trouble with some. He couldn't tell where the bank was until Aria pointed it out: Weavile's Bank was made of sturdy stone and metal. He couldn't tell what most of the wagons sold, and this time, Aria was no help—she didn't know either.

"Yeah, thanks for the tour and all, but we were sent down here to get the Guildmaster a package. So far, we don't have a package. So could you please stop procrastinating and show me where the Kecleon Shop is?!" he said, his voice rising in irritation.

"Why, you're right here!"

Jay turned around, startled by the voices that had spoken in unison. He found himself face-to-face with two chameleon-like creatures: one green and one purple. They were standing in a wooden building with a roof that was modeled to look like the green one's head. He recognized the Pokémon as Kecleon.

"Oh…" Jay looked down in embarrassment. "Sorry. I'm new to this place," he added quickly.

"It's okay, my good chum! We see a lot of new Pokémon around here," the green Kecleon said with a smile.

The purple Kecleon noticed Aria and smiled. "Oh! Hello, Miss Aria! It's so nice to see you again!" he said jovially.

"Is this Totodile your partner, by any chance?" the green Kecleon said.

"Yep! He's the leader of our exploration team. We're Team River Song, and we're gonna become famous explorers someday!" Aria said happily.

"Well, congratulations!" the green Kecleon said with a nod of respect.

The purple Kecleon leaned in towards Jay and lowered his voice to a whisper: "You are very lucky to work with Aria. She's a very skilled explorer already, and I'm sure you and her can make a great team!"

"Yeah. We're already a great team. When he first met me, he started screaming at me," Aria said. She winked at Jay and gave him a playful smile just to let him know she was teasing.

"As you can see, we've got great chemistry—we tease each other at every moment we've got," Jay added.

"How sweet!" the purple Kecleon said with a smile. He earned a nudge from the green Kecleon, but he didn't seem particularly bothered. Meanwhile, Jay took great care to distance himself from Aria.

"Okay, enough messing around. We're here on official guild business. Guildmaster Flygon said she ordered a package from you?" Aria prompted.

"Package? What package?" the purple Kecleon asked.

"No… Don't tell me you forgot about that package!" the green Kecleon said, a note of panic in his voice.

The purple Kecleon smiled. "Just kidding. I know exactly what you're talking about," he said, giving his brother a playful push.

The green Kecleon wasn't very pleased, but he smiled tightly and turned around. "I'm sorry, Miss Aria. My brother is quite the jokester… Anyway, I do have that package that the Guildmaster requested; just give me a moment…"

There was the sound of rustling and crashing from behind the counter, but after a few moments, he turned around with a partially-squashed box in his hands. He pushed it over the counter and grinned.

"Here it is: one package for the Guildmaster!" he said.

Jay picked it up off the counter and nearly dropped it; he was quite surprised to find that it was very heavy. He stumbled back under the weight of the package but regained his balance fairly quickly.

"Agh—what's in here, anyway? Rocks?!" he gasped.

"Who knows?" Aria said, smiling a bit at Jay's struggle.

"Anyway… thanks, I guess… C'mon, Aria! I don't know how much longer I can hold this thing!" Jay groaned as he clumsily stepped forward. Aria strutted forward, and though he shot her a distressed glance, she did nothing to help him.

"We hope to do business with you again!" the purple Kecleon called as the duo began to walk towards the hill.

It was slow progress. Aria was walking at a leisurely pace, but she was still faster than Jay. Several times, Jay almost dropped the package on his toes, and he could feel his arms straining to hold it up.

_Sheesh… What the heck is even in here? And why would the Guildmaster need something that weighs a ton? _Jay thought. But he quickly stopped speculating as to what was in the package; he could only focus on putting one foot in front of the other.

He looked up from his aching feet and gasped.

A Pokémon was barreling down the hill, gaining momentum with each step it took. It looked somewhat like an otter standing on its hind legs, but it had orange fur and a tan belly, something Jay had never seen on an otter. It had a yellow ring around its neck and appeared to have two tails. Jay recognized it as a Buizel.

"Coming through!" the Buizel cried. Its voice was rather high-pitched but definitely male.

Aria stepped out of the way of the otter and motioned for Jay to move. Buizel was racing straight towards him, and he was running too fast to stop.

Jay tried to get out of the way, but he couldn't move: the package was weighing him down and preventing agile movement. He tried to sidestep the Buizel but couldn't do much—he almost tripped over his feet.

Jay closed his eyes and braced for the impact.

The Buizel ran into him with a loud "WAH!" He fell to the ground and felt the package fall from his hands. Buizel's body was on top of him, and as he struggled to get up, he earned a kick in the face.

"Oh! I'm so sorry," Buizel said as he felt his foot connect with his face.

"Urgh… Get off of me!" Jay said harshly.

"Yes! I'm sorry…" Buizel added quickly.

Jay felt the otter pull himself off his body. He rubbed his face and moaned as pain pulsed in his snout. He placed his arms on the ground and pushed himself up, blinking his eyes.

When his vision cleared, he found himself facing Aria. A concerned look was on her face, but she couldn't hide a slight smile. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"Y-yeah…" he said absently. He was still dizzy from falling and being kicked in the face, but he was at least off the ground. He rubbed his head again and felt a knot on his left side—was his impact on the ground really that hard?

He turned around until he faced the Buizel, which was looking guiltily at the package on the ground. "I'm really sorry, dude… I just couldn't change paths in time," he said.

"You'd better be sorry. I'm not in the best mood right now… Being run over and being kicked in the face isn't a very good start to your day," Jay grumbled.

Buizel stepped back, his eyes widening in surprise. Jay earned a swift slap from Aria, but even she looked defensive. "Yeah… He gets that way when he's really angry," she said.

"I'm so sorry… Hey, how about I pick up this package for you?" Buizel asked, noticing the partially squashed box.

"I could use the help. That thing weighs a million tons!" Jay said, flexing his sore arms.

Buizel bent down and wrapped his hands around the box. He strained under the weight as he picked it up, but in only a few seconds, he had accomplished the task. He lifted the package up and held it possessively against his chest, panting from the effort.

"Thanks!" Jay said. He held out his hands, clearly asking for him to hand the package back.

When Buizel didn't hand it back, Jay began to get suspicious. "Ahem… It would be nice if you could give me the package…" he said, his voice rising to a dangerous edge. Jay could feel Aria tense behind him, and a quick glance revealed that her tail was pointed straight up and her eyes were alert.

Buizel didn't say anything and refused to hand over the package. His grip tightened on it, making it even more squished than it already was.

"Give it back or I'll bite your head off!" Jay threatened.

It was an empty threat; even if he wanted to, he was still too weak to do anything in the way of fighting. However, a flicker of fear did slide across Buizel's face before being replaced with a sneer.

"Man, Flygon is really getting desperate, isn't she?" he said.

"What do you mean?" Aria demanded.

"She let two idiots join her guild… Even Snorlax's Guild has higher standards!" Buizel guffawed.

"Are you calling us idiots?" Jay cried.

"Why, yes. You just fell for the oldest trick in the book… If someone offers to pick something up for you, never trust them!" Buizel said.

Before either of them could respond, Buizel turned around and sped off in the opposite direction, the package still tucked in his arms. His two tails spun like propellers, and despite the heavy package he was carrying, he was surprisingly fast.

Once Aria had recovered from her shock, she stamped the ground and swore viciously. "That little—! I should've known!" she screamed.

"What?" Jay asked stupidly.

"Can't you tell?! He's a criminal! He just stole our package! _He just stole Flygon's package!_" she yelled, punctuating every word with a slap.

Jay felt an unexplained rage flare up inside him, but it faded just as quickly to be replaced by a deflated feeling. He slumped forward and sighed, kicking a pebble on the ground. "Whoop-de-doo. We can't get one simple errand right, can we?" he mumbled.

"Snap out of it, man. It stinks to have something stolen from us, but we can get it back! You can bite his head off if it makes you feel better," Aria said firmly.

"But the Guildmaster said to report back to her soon… She'll worry if we don't get back to her…" he said.

"Since when did you care about the Guildmaster?!" Aria glanced around and noticed all the funny looks she was getting; she quickly looked to the ground and grumbled.

"We should be honest with her. We failed, and we shouldn't try to hide it," Jay said dejectedly.

Aria opened her mouth to say something, but she sighed and closed it almost immediately. "Be right back," she said.

She ran over to the Kecleons, who wore identical expressions of shock on their faces. Jay could hear them stuttering in surprise—clearly, they had just witness the robbery.

"Tell the Guildmaster what happened. Don't try and sugarcoat it—tell her that we were robbed. If she wonders where we are, tell her we're robbing it back. You got that?" she said urgently.

The Kecleons quickly recovered from their surprise and nodded profusely, their eyes still wide with terror. "Yes, ma'am," the green Kecleon said meekly.

Aria ran back to Jay without another word. "There! Now that we've gotten that taken care of… let's go! The more we talk, the further he gets!" she cried.

One more slap to the face snapped Jay out of his stupor. Though he was still uncertain about the whole plan, he knew one thing for certain: he was going to give Buizel a piece of his mind.

_This is where it gets real… Yesterday was just a warm up, and now, we've got our first exam!_

Aria took off running in the direction that Buizel escaped. Jay followed behind her, nervousness and excitement coursing through his body.

XxX

The field beyond Trader's Village was hilly and grassy. A few wildflowers popped up, and occasionally, a lone pine tree would sprout from the ground. The sun was burning overhead, though it didn't seem as hot as yesterday. A few clouds floated overhead.

Aria led the way, following some imprints in the long grass. "That's the thing about grass… If you look carefully enough, you can see imprints in the grass. Buizel will never know what's coming!" she said.

Jay looked carefully in the grass and found that she was right—the grass was periodically stamped down, indicating footprints from him and Aria.

"Plus, even if there weren't any footprints, I think I'd know where he's going—Echo Cave," Aria said.

"Echo Cave?" Jay asked.

"It's a popular hideout for criminals. It leads from one side of the region to the other, and the Pokémon in there aren't very strong—just a couple of Whismur. Lots of thieves go there to avoid capture," Aria explained.

"And you know this… how?" Jay asked, his eyes narrowing suspiciously.

"When you've been an explorer as long as I have, you know things," Aria replied without looking back.

A few minutes of silence passed. Jay began to cramp up from running so much, but when he slowed down even a little bit, Aria would insist that he keep running. The meadow never seemed to end, and the sun seemed to grow hotter by the second.

"Urgh… Are we there yet?" Jay moaned as he dragged his feet behind him.

"Almost. If you look closely, you can see a pile of rocks up ahead—that's Echo Cave. If my calculations are correct, Buizel should be somewhere in there…" Aria said.

Squinting closely, Jay found that indeed, there was a pile of white rocks several yards ahead. There was a small opening in the rocks that presumably led underground. Jay picked up his pace—surely there would be some shade underground.

A few seconds later, they reached the rock pile. The opening was even smaller than Jay had thought, and he wasn't even sure if he could fit through.

He was snapped out of his thoughts by a strange sound from the tunnel. It sounded like something—or someone—was yelling inside. The eerie sound echoed off the walls and filtered out of the small cave, giving Jay the shivers.

"Don't worry, those are just the Whismur. They sound big and scary, but that's only because their voices echo off the walls. There's a reason why this place is called 'Echo Cave', Aria explained as she noted Jay's discomfort.

"What the heck is a Whismur?" Jay asked.

"You'll see. Now, let's go! The longer we wait, the further that slimeball gets!" Aria said.

Jay glanced nervously at the small opening. His head looked like it was way too big to fit in it. He tried to go in feet-first, and he got about halfway in before getting stuck.

"Are you stuck?" Aria asked.

"What's it look like? Of course I'm stuck!" he said.

Without another word, Aria shoved his head forward. The sudden movement made Jay scream, but it did the trick—he slid through the hole and fell down into darkness, falling on the rocky ground a few feet below.

Aria jumped in after him, landing on her feet a few inches away. Jay moaned and struggled to his knees, rubbing his chin, which had gotten scraped as he fell down.

He looked around and couldn't see much of his surroundings; the only light came from above, and even though the sun's rays were bright, they still didn't do much to light up the cave.

"Well, here we are… I seriously hope I'm right about this, because if I'm not, we just ran all that way for nothing," she said.

"But how will we see? It's super dark in here!" Jay cried, peering into the blackness ahead.

"Your eyes will adjust. Let's get going!" Aria said.

Jay took one last nervous look at the light above, his stomach writhing. He was uncertain about taking on a criminal two days after he arrived in this world…

"Let's get this over with," he said.

He clenched his hands into fists and barred his teeth. Then he stepped forward into the darkness, Aria following a few paces behind.

Soon, the soft light from the sun had vanished, leaving them in complete darkness. Jay was at first not used to this, but as time went on, he found that his eyes did indeed adjust to the darkness. He could vaguely see Aria following behind him.

From what he could gather, the cave was more of a maze than anything. The underground passages twisted and turned without warning. More than once, Jay found himself walking into a wall. Aria would giggle for a moment but then fall quiet.

Thirty minutes in, Jay found their first enemy: a Whismur. It was small and a light lavender hue, and it had two light yellow "antennae" on its head. Its mouth was slightly agape and its eyes were four lines.

Jay couldn't hide his panic. He had never battled before, and he was not at all ready to fight. Although the Whismur didn't look too threatening, he was still nervous.

"Don't worry, dude. You got this! Just use one of your moves!" Aria said.

"My moves?" Jay echoed.

"I don't have time to give you a whole lesson now, but you can do it! Just focus really hard and it'll just come to you!" Aria replied.

Jay closed his eyes and blocked everything out, focusing on a "move" to use. He didn't want to do anything too violent—he didn't know if he had the strength or the heart to harm a Pokémon too much.

When he opened his eyes, he knew what to do.

He lunged forward at the Whismur, who cowered in fear. He leapt on it and dragged his claws across its body, surprised to see little drops of blood seeping through three scratches.

The Whismur gasped and let out a small squeak. Jay backed off, feeling rather sick to his stomach. He had just hurt a creature, an innocent little creature with no intent on harming him. Was it the right thing to do?

"Great job, Jay!" Aria said.

The Whismur tried to scoot away as Aria bared down on it, but the creature didn't have time. Aria sank her teeth into its neck. It let out a small whimper and tried to struggle, but its body fell still and turned pale.

Jay gagged. "Ugh… That was disgusting!" he screamed.

"You're gonna have to get used to it if you wanna be a good explorer," Aria said simply.

She leapt over the Whismur's body and continued down the tunnel. Jay hesitated, feeling as though he should do something about the Whismur, but he didn't know what he could do…

He shrugged it off. _Maybe it'll feel better soon…_

He continued after Aria, trying not to look at the unconscious Pokémon he left behind.

Jay struggled with himself, wondering if what he did was right. It wasn't going to do anything to him; it almost looked incapable of attack. So why had he lunged forward to attack it…?

His question was answered when they encountered another Whismur. He didn't want to attack it like he did the last one, so he backed up and cowered behind Aria. His partner sighed and lunged forward, tackling the Whismur to the ground.

Jay winced; he expected that the poor creature was going to fall unconscious again. But a whole other story was starting to unfold right before his eyes.

Whismur had not been defeated; it was hanging onto a threat, barely on its feet. It opened its mouth, and Aria backed up, shooting a glare at Jay. Her ears flattened against her head as the Whismur finished opening its mouth.

The small creature let out an impossibly loud screech that was seemingly amplified by the echoing walls. Jay was so surprised that he stumbled back, pressing his hands against his skull to block out the terrible noise that was emanating from all around. Yet no matter what he did, he could still hear the horrible screech piercing his brain…

Finally, it stopped. Jay opened his eyes and was surprised to find that he was lying on the ground. His arms hurt from pressing against his head. The Whismur was standing there like nothing had happened.

He blinked, and all his indecision melted away. Aria was right: if he wanted to be a successful explorer—or even survive—he needed to fight. If he didn't make the first move, his enemy would…

He leapt at the Whismur and scratched it again. This was enough to finish it off; with a dull thump, the lavender creature fell to the ground.

Aria was staring daggers at him. "We wouldn't have had to listen to that if you had just moved first!" she cried.

"I know, I know… I was just uncertain about hurting such innocent creatures—"

"You call that innocent?!" Aria cried.

"Let's just go…" Jay said.

"You're right. We can finish this conversation later; we've got a mystery dungeon to explore!" Aria said, her voice dropping to a whisper.

Through the rest of their journey, they encountered many more Whismurs. They defeated most of them before they could attack, but once or twice one would sneak in and knock Jay or Aria down. Luckily, none of them screamed again.

Without conversation to distract him, Jay found himself hearing strange things. He could hear the quiet footsteps of him and Aria as they traversed down the tunnel. Sometimes, he'd hear a drop of water hit the ground. One time, he could've sworn he heard someone scream… but surely that was just his imagination… right?

He often heard whispers or similar noises, and while they were certainly unnerving, Aria assured him that it was just the Whismur. "Even though they are capable of screaming very loud," she explained, "most of the time, they're quiet as a mouse."

The ambience was actually rather peaceful for Jay. It was a nice break from the noisiness of the guild and Trader's Village, and though it was still rather spooky, he found himself strangely relaxed.

It was about two hours before anything of note happened. While they were making their way down another one of the endless passages, Aria's ears suddenly perked up. She stuck her nose high into the air and started sniffing for something.

"What's up? Do you hear something?" Jay whispered.

"Yeah… I can smell him. Buizel. He's been down here… I don't think he's too far away!" she replied, her nose still high in the air.

Jay was shocked by Aria's receptiveness. He couldn't smell anything, save for the muskiness of the cave. How had his partner been able to pick out the scent of a Pokémon? "How can you…?"

"I'm incredibly receptive. I think it's just part of me. But when you're an explorer, you kind of need these things…" Aria said.

She turned away from her partner, her tail twitching nervously. "Be prepared to fight. He could be right around the corner…" Her voice dropped to a whisper and she cautiously stepped forward.

Jay felt the need for stealth as well, and he quieted his breathing and stood on his tiptoes. He clenched his hands into fists and narrowed his eyes as his heart raced in excitement.

Aria took the lead for a few minutes. She walked with her nose in the air, occasionally stopping to sniff the air or listen for something. Jay guarded the back, making sure Buizel wasn't trying to sneak up behind them. They continued this way for several minutes until they reached a branching path.

Aria turned down each path and sniffed a few times, but she seemed unsatisfied. She continued to glance down the halls while Jay looked on.

Finally, Aria turned back to Jay and sighed. "I don't know where he is now…" she said glumly.

Jay's stomach dropped. "You lost him?" he asked.

"What part about 'I don't know where he is' do you not understand?! I lost him, okay?!" Aria snapped. When she noticed the surprised look on Jay's face, she backed up and softened. "I-I'm sorry, Jay. I just don't know what to do now…"

He looked into the crestfallen face of his partner and felt the strange desire to help her. He got down on his knees and prepared for a heart-to-heart, but something caught his eye.

His head snapped up and he leapt to his feet, his hands clenched into fists. Aria was so shocked that she forgot to be sad; she gasped and whipped around, following Jay's gaze. "What was that?"

Jay held up a hand to silence his partner. He knew he wasn't imagining things; he had seen someone down the left tunnel.

Hurried footsteps followed, and heavy breathing could be heard. He blinked hard and saw a flash of orange fur.

"Aria?" he whispered.

"Yeah?" Aria replied.

He could see him coming from several yards away. Buizel was stammering forward, the package clutched tightly in his hands. His eyes were wide and he was gasping for air. When he saw Aria and Jay, he screeched to a stop.

"I think we just found him…"

Before either of them could say a word, Buizel whirled around and raced away, stumbling over his legs.

"Let's go!" Aria cried.

She bolted ahead of Jay, all four of her legs scampering to keep up with him. He was about to follow her, but before he did, he stopped and began to think.

Time seemed to slow down as his mind raced to think of a plan. _He's much faster than both of us, even with that heavy package… so pursuing him won't do us any good… What can we do…?_

Buizel was almost out of sight by the time he came up with a good game plan. Instead of pursuing the thief, Jay cupped his hands to his mouth and cried after him: "Get back here, coward! Stand and fight!"

Aria seemed to sense his plan, and she turned around and made her way back to her partner. "Good idea," she said as she flashed him a split-second smile. Jay returned the smile but quickly returned his focus to his enemy.

Buizel skittered to a stop again. He turned around, and even from a distance, Jay could see fire in his eyes. He felt a thrill of excitement; he had intended to enrage his foe, and it seemed to be working.

"I AM NOT A COWARD!" Buizel screamed.

He tossed the package aside and barreled towards the team, his paws outstretched. Jay didn't have room to evade the attack, but he did manage to duck just as the weasel reached him. Buizel ended up tripping over Jay, and he lost his balance and fell a few feet away.

Jay got up and brushed the dirt off his snout. Aria nodded in approval. "Nice one. Not the way I would've done it, but…"

"Graaaah!" Buizel roared as he shakily got to his feet. "You must think you're so clever, huh? Well, guess what? Your cleverness runs out now! Guildmaster Haxorus trains us harder than you can imagine, and I'm not gonna let myself fall over you idiots!" he cried.

Aria growled and pawed the ground. Jay remembered her animosity with Haxorus's Guild, and he felt a bitter taste in his mouth.

"You are sadly mistaken, Buizel. You're the stupid one. See, for telling me that, you've made me angry. And when I'm angry, somebody loses their head," Aria said, her voice a deadly calm.

Buizel gulped, but he held his ground. His eyes narrowed and he growled: "Enough chat… If you say you're as strong as you think you are, show it!"

He charged the explorers again, and this time, Jay had no time to react. He fell to the ground as Buizel tackled him. His head hit the ground hard, and a spasm of pain shot through him.

The thief was holding him to the ground, and when Jay's vision cleared, he could see a crazed smile on his face. He tried to wrestle his way out of Buizel's hold, but his assailant held firm. He raised a hand up above his head and prepared to hit him.

Jay winced, expecting a swift slap across the face, but it never came.

The weight on his chest suddenly vanished. He opened his eyes a crack, and when he did, he discovered that Aria had managed to tackle Buizel off. The two were engaged in combat a few feet away, and though Buizel was fighting hard, Aria appeared to have the upper hand.

Jay caught Aria's eye for a brief moment. She grinned, just enough to reassure him that she was okay. She located the squished package, which was lying by her feet as the two battled. She nodded towards it, then ducked to avoid Buizel's swinging hand.

Jay got the message. He slowly made his way towards the brawlers, inching closer and closer to the package. Buizel was focused on Aria, who was still engaged with him, so he didn't notice that the box which he had worked so hard to retrieve was now being taken back.

Jay summoned all his strength and picked up the box. Initially, he buckled under the weight, but with a grunt, he managed to straighten up and hold on tight to it. He still didn't know what was in it, but he had other things to worry about.

Buizel was on his last straw. He moved slower and breathed in short gasps. He could barely block Aria's rapid-fire attacks, and he couldn't do to counter them. Jay wanted desperately to help out, but he could barely hold onto the box; fighting would be too difficult.

Luckily, he didn't need to help—Aria finally bested him. Buizel fell to the ground, and Aria towered over him. Jay almost felt sorry for the poor guy; he was cut in many places and looked positively terrified… but then he remembered that he was a criminal, and the feeling passed.

Buizel had been reduced to a stammering mess. He desperately choked out pleas to Aria: "No no no… I'll do anything, please… d-don't hurt me…"

Aria examined Buizel like he was a science experiment about to be dissected. Her eyes didn't show a glint of mercy—they were as black as night. However, she smiled sweetly and leaned in close to Buizel. "When you get back to that nasty guild of yours, I want you to tell them that Aria did this to you. Got that, pipsqueak?" she whispered.

Buizel sighed. His whole body seemed to relax, though his breathing was still quick. "I-I understand… I won't forget…" he said.

Aria smiled. "Thank you!" she chided.

Before Buizel could do anything, she smacked him across the cheek. He recoiled in surprise and fear, but he nodded all the same. "I'm sorry… I'll never do this again! I promise!"

Aria finally got off him, and he got to his feet and ran off, blubbering his apologies.

She turned to Jay, who wore an expression of mixed shock and admiration. "Whoa… That was awesome!" he said.

"Thank you. Like I said, just because I'm a 'frilly pink cat' doesn't mean I can't kick butt," she said with a teasing smile. She eyed the box and nodded. "I see you have the package?" she noted.

"Yep. And it's about time, too," he said.

"You said it," Aria replied.

"Anyway, let's get out of here before Buizel decides to come back for round two… though I'm sure you could take him again," Jay said.

"That guy? Psh, he was a piece of cake. We'd better get something more challenging for tomorrow!" Aria said indifferently.

Jay nodded, though he silently thought that this was challenging enough.

He brought his hand up to his Explorer Badge and tapped it lightly. Aria did the same, and the column of light descended on them again. Everything went white as his feet left the ground, and the two explorers were teleported out of Echo Cave.

XxX

When the light faded, Jay found himself in front of the guild, safe and sound. Aria was right next to him, stretching her legs and shaking her head. The package was still in his arms, weighing him down quite a bit. He still felt weary from the battle with Buizel, but as he looked up at the guild, he couldn't help but feel calm.

The sky was dark and full of stars, and Jay began to wonder just how long they were gone. It only felt like a few hours, and it was only morning when they began their chase…

"Jay… Aria…"

His head snapped towards the source of the voice. He stepped back in shock when he realized who had spoken.

Krokorok was standing just inside the guild, his arms folded. His mouth was twisted into a low frown, and his eyes shone even in the dark light of the night.

XxX

**DUN DUN DUUUUUUUUUN! Krokorok's back! (I'm sure you guys were just ****_dying _****to see him again. *sarcasm*)**

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Don't forget to review!**


	10. Smiles and Tears

**Hey guys! I'm back again with another big ol' chapter!**

**This one's kind of boring, but I promise things will start picking up soon! It's only chapter 10, after all.**

**So without further ado, here is my latest chapter! Enjoy!**

Chapter 10: Smiles and Tears

Jay felt a twist of anger and fear in his stomach. Krokorok looked so serious… had he done something wrong? Surely he couldn't have messed up… right?

Aria remained stoic, but her eyes widened in fear as she looked up to Krokorok's face. She gulped and seemed to be holding back a scream.

"You two are incredibly late. We have already finished our dinner; indeed, we were getting ready to lock down for the night. Would you like to explain why you only now return?" Krokorok said flatly.

Aria began to stutter out an explanation. "We were running an errand—"

"We got a package for the Guildmaster—" Jay added.

"But then, on our way back, a Buizel stole it—"

"Took it to Echo Cave—"

"We had to get it back…"

Jay held up the heavy package; the effort nearly drained him, but he managed to hold it out to Krokorok. "See? We got it back… and we did our daily exploration…"

Krokorok examined the box, running his hand over a dent in the side. Jay felt a twist of fear; Krokorok was slowly starting to frown, his yellowed teeth sticking out of his mouth.

"Do you have an explanation as to why it got so dented?" he asked quietly.

"Buizel may have dropped it a few times…" Aria said as she looked down at the ground.

Krokorok's frown grew deeper, but before he could say anything more, Jay blurted something out against his better judgment. "But wait! Before we took off after Buizel, we told the Kecleons to tell Flygon where we were! Did they not tell you?" he cried.

"The Kecleons did not tell me anything of that sort…" Krokorok said dryly.

"But…"

"Enough." The firmness behind his voice warned them not to say another word. Jay looked to the ground in shame—perhaps it would've been better to talk to the Guildmaster before taking off.

"As you should know, it is against the rules to go off on unapproved explorations. Because of this, we will have to report this to the Guildmaster…" Krokorok explained.

Aria turned pale and gasped. "No! Please! We didn't do anything wrong!" she cried.

Krokorok turned to Aria and growled. He raised his hand in the air as Aria flinched; for a moment, it looked like he was going to strike her across the face. However, he thought better of it and lowered his hand, though the sour look still remained on his face.

"If you want to know what's best for you, you will stop talking and follow me. The Guildmaster will assign appropriate punishment for you both," Krokorok whispered. His dark eyes held a very sinister look to them.

Jay looked hopelessly at Aria, who simply shook her head. Looking closer, he realized that tears were starting to leak out of the corners of her eyes.

"Follow me," Krokorok repeated firmly.

He made his way to the tent and ducked under the flap. He began scaling down the ladder, beckoning for the two to follow him. Aria let out a long sigh but still followed the large alligator.

Jay found that it would be almost impossible to scale down the ladder with the package in his hands, so he set the package down and wrapped his tail around it. He found that his tail was actually rather strong; although he was still getting used to it, he still had a firm hold on the package.

He walked down the ladder with dread in his heart. Krokorok's stern tone made him feel like he hadn't done the right thing… but they had stopped a criminal and retrieved their package… what was so bad about that?

_Ugh… If I'm gonna get in trouble for doing the right thing, I'm not gonna stick around here any more, _Jay thought bitterly.

The guild had transformed while they were away. Only a few torches were lit, providing only a little bit of light. There weren't any Pokémon around except for him, Aria, and Krokorok. The only sounds that could be heard were the distant snores of the sleeping apprentices.

Jay longed to return to his room and tuck in for the night; the eventful day had drained him both physically and emotionally. Though most of his wounds and bruises had healed, he still ached and he had trouble seeing straight.

When he reached the bottom of the second ladder, he followed Krokorok to the Guildmaster's chamber. He loosened his tail's grip on the package, and with a soft thunk, it hit the ground. He bent down and heaved the package up with his arms, relieved that his tail could finally get a break.

Krokorok knocked on the wood door, and a few seconds later, Flygon opened it. She looked rather weary at first, but when she noticed Aria and Jay, she brightened up considerably.

"Team River Song! Oh, I'm so glad you're okay!" Flygon gushed. "I was so worried… We were about to send a search team out for you guys! You've been gone a long time…"

Hearing this only made Jay feel even guiltier. Though it was a relief to not be immediately punished, he had a feeling that Flygon would quickly get over her euphoria and scold them. He looked down at the brown package in his hands as his mouth curled into a frown.

"Come in, come in! You must be starving… I saved a portion of dinner for you guys just in case you were gonna be late…" Flygon said, gesturing listlessly to the bright chamber behind her.

Jay still didn't say anything. Aria coughed and looked around, and out of the corner of his eye, Jay could see Krokorok looking very sour.

Flygon quickly noticed this and frowned slightly. "What's with the long faces? Did something bad happen out there?"

"Why aren't you angry at us for going out without telling you?" Jay blurted out.

Krokorok shot Jay a glare, but he focused on the dragon. Flygon tilted her head curiously.

"Why would I be mad? You seem to have gotten my package. Sure, I was kind of expecting it earlier, but…" Flygon said.

"They broke one of our number one rules! Nobody is allowed to go out without checking with you or someone else first!" Krokorok said.

"We couldn't help it! There was a Buizel, and he stole from us, and we had to go chase him down! We didn't want to return to you and say that we failed!" Aria cried.

"Shh… Don't forget that the others are sleeping…" Flygon said, holding a finger to her mouth.

"That's no excuse! You could've just come down here and told the Guildmaster that you were going out… It wouldn't have been too time consuming!" Krokorok retorted.

Flygon considered this for a moment. Jay glanced nervously from Krokorok to the Guildmaster. He could feel his eyes stinging from lack of sleep and his arms aching from holding up the heavy package.

_If you're gonna punish us, do it already!_

After what seemed like eternity of silence, Flygon finally nodded. "Well, it is true that you did break one of our rules… It would've been nice if you let us know before taking off, but I can understand that you'd be in a rush…"

"That still doesn't excuse—" Krokorok began.

Flygon glared at Krokorok. Jay tensed; he could practically see the fire in her eyes. Krokorok returned this stare, his clawed hands clenched into fists.

For several tense moments, it seemed like the two were going to break out into a fight. In those long moments, Jay felt a strange sympathy for Flygon; he figured it must've been incredibly difficult to have Krokorok as a partner. He could barely last two minutes with him, but Flygon had to survive the whole day…

_Why does she even let Krokorok stick around? If she quarrels with him this much, why doesn't she kick him out? _Jay wondered.

Finally, Flygon spoke up. She nodded curtly and didn't take her eyes off Krokorok. "Thank you for your input. You are dismissed." She pointed at the dark guild behind her, and her tone made it clear that he should leave.

Krokorok grumbled something under his breath—most likely an insult. However, he turned around and stalked back into the darkness. A few seconds later, the shadows swallowed him up, but Jay couldn't help but feel that his eyes were still watching them.

Flygon sighed and turned back to the youngsters. "I'm so sorry. Him and I just don't get along…" she said.

"I never noticed," Jay said sarcastically.

Aria nudged him in the side, but Flygon chuckled dryly. "Yes. I'm sure it's very obvious that we have our share of differences… Anyway, come in, and let's discuss your consequences."

Jay gasped and nearly dropped the package. He had assumed that Flygon wouldn't punish them for breaking a rule; they got the package and went exploring, just like Flygon had said. Sure, they broke a rule… but they couldn't very well let Buizel get away, right?

Aria seemed to deflate. Her tail fell to the ground and her ears flattened. Her legs were trembling hard as she stepped forward into the Guildmaster's room.

Jay followed her on awkward footing; his arms were getting tired from holding up the box for so long. He stumbled into the bright room and set it down as gently as he could.

The Guildmaster closed the door behind them. With a flap of her wings, she fluttered over to the center of the room. Her feet touched the floor, and though her gaze was kind, Jay felt like he was being burned to a crisp. It didn't help that the room carried a heavy aromatic smell; it felt like he was suffocating under the heat and stifling smell.

"We're sorry…" Aria apologized.

Flygon held up her hand. "Enough!" she asserted. "I don't want to hear 'I'm sorry' or 'please don't punish us'. I appreciate that you're sorry for breaking a rule, but I don't want to hear it…"

Jay took an involuntary step back at her harsh words. He had never heard the Guildmaster use this tone of voice on him.

Aria didn't seem to be so scared; she simply nodded and didn't say anything. Something told Jay that his partner had gotten this talk many times before.

"But wait... Are you saying that the Kecleons didn't tell you anything? We asked them to tell you where we were..." Aria asked.

Flygon tilted her head. "Oh? You told the Kecleons to tell me that you were away?" she asked.

"Yeah... Did they not?" Jay asked.

"No. Then again, it would be unwise to ask a shopkeeper to run an errand for you, especially the Kecleons. They never leave their shop during their hours; you never know when a customer might come in. And those two stick together like glue; they almost never leave each other alone," Flygon explained.

"That's a pretty lame excuse..." Jay noted.

"Yeah. When we say that we need a message to be delivered to you, we usually mean it," Aria said.

Flygon spread her arms apart. "I can't control others," she said.

Jay felt even worse as he listened to the Guildmaster speak. He began to feel like he should've told her where they were going... were they really doing the right thing by just darting off without telling her?

Flygon took a deep breath. "But enough about that. I want you to tell me the whole story. Start when you first left the guild to pick up my package," she said. Her voice seemed noticeably softer.

Jay sighed and relaxed a bit. That was all he needed at the time: tell the Guildmaster about their adventures in a hope that she would understand their plight. Maybe she wouldn't punish them so hard if she knew the whole story…

"Well, when Jay and I went out to Trader's Village this morning…"

Jay and Aria took turns explaining the day to Flygon. Sometimes, she'd open her mouth like she wanted to make a comment, but she remained quiet through most of their explanation. However, when they got to the part about challenging Buizel, she couldn't help but start gushing about their safety.

"You guys took on a criminal all by yourselves? That could've really hurt you! And if he beat you, he would've taken away the package and we wouldn't know what happened to it because you'd be sitting there unconscious in the dungeon and—" Flygon blabbed.

"What's so important about this stupid package?" Jay asked, kicking the box by his feet. His toe rammed into the heavy object inside and stung for a little while, but other than a small wince, he ignored the pain.

Flygon sighed and creased her brow, looking from the package to Jay's curious face. "It's… nothing you need to worry about," she said after a moment's hesitation.

"Oh? If we don't need to worry about it, then why don't you just show us what's in there?" Aria pressed.

"I forgot how inquisitive you guys are… Trust me; you'd lose sleep if you knew about it. Don't worry; it's nothing bad… Look, j-just forget about it. It's nothing." Flygon suddenly looked nervous.

"You know we're never gonna forget about it…" Jay said.

Flygon shook her head adamantly. "You don't have to forget about it. You just can't know about it. Now, continue on with your explanation, please."

Jay wasn't quite ready to let it go, but he realized that there was no point in trying to get an answer out of her. Between her tone of voice and firm expression, he knew that all conversation about the mysterious package had stopped.

"Okay… So when Buizel was trying to attack me…"

The duo completed their conversation without further interruption. Jay noticed as he was talking that Flygon seemed on edge, but she didn't say anything as they finished talking.

"Alright, enough talking. What's our consequence?" Aria prompted.

Flygon didn't seem to have an answer right away. She rubbed her chin and mused to herself, but she didn't seem to be angry or upset. If anything, she looked… sorry.

"Well… you got me on a technicality," she said at last.

Jay tilted his head. "What do you mean?" he questioned.

"You did what I asked. You retrieved a package from the Kecleons and went exploring afterwards. Even though you broke a rule, you did what I asked you to do…" Flygon elaborated.

"Um… thanks?" Aria said, chuckling sheepishly.

"But we still get a consequence, right?" Jay asked.

"Yes. But don't worry; it isn't a major consequence. You won't miss dinner tomorrow or anything like that; no… like I said, you did what I asked you to do, even if you bent a few rules," Flygon said.

"Well, what are we gonna have to do to make up for it?" Aria asked. The annoyance was clear in her voice.

"I'm going to have to take away a few things of yours… don't worry; all I want is a bit of Poké and a few items," Flygon said.

Jay instinctively put his hand on his Explorer Bag. After what had happened today, he wasn't ready to trust anyone with his items. He stepped back and clenched his teeth, but he didn't say anything to argue with his superior.

Aria looked down at her feet and nodded. "I understand, Guildmaster. It's only fair… Just because we're beginners doesn't mean we get a free pass for breaking the rules," she said quietly.

"Thank you guys for your understanding," Flygon said with a nod. "Now… can you please hand over 300 Poké, an Oran berry, and a Rawst berry?"  
>Jay didn't want to hand over anything, but his arm moved on its own as he unfastened his Explorer Bag.<p>

As he peered into the leather satchel, he realized he had never seen the contents of the bag. He wasn't surprised to find that it was stuffed with berries, seeds, and other trinkets which he had no name for. On the side of the bag, a small pocket was fastened by a silver button.

He unfastened the pocket and found it was filled with shiny gold coins—Poké. He didn't know how much each coin was worth, but when he grabbed a handful and presented them to Flygon, she seemed pleased.

Returning to his bag, he brought out two blue berries: an Oran and a Rawst. He silently handed them to Flygon, who nodded in thanks. She turned around and set the coins and fruits on the ground behind her.

"Thank you for your cooperation," she said.

"Uh huh," Jay mumbled. Though he was still relieved that they weren't punished too severely, he was still noticeably upset. His bag already felt lighter than before.

"Can we have dinner now? I'm hungry!" Aria asked, completely changing the subject.

Flygon smiled. "Of course you can!"

She picked up two plates that were piled high with colorful berries. She presented the explorers with the plates and grinned. Jay eagerly grabbed them from her hands and tried not to let any of the berries fall.

"Scoot on over to your room now. You can finish dinner there," she said.

Jay's stomach rumbled as he looked over the platters of food. He was so hungry that he felt like he could devour both servings in one gulp, but he figured that wouldn't be very good for his health.

"Thanks, Guildmaster!" he said gratefully.

He ambled to the door and licked his lips; the towering plates of food almost made him forget about his punishment. Aria followed behind him, looking just as hungry.

But before he could continue to his room, Flygon cleared her throat.

"I'm sorry I had to do this… You truly did do a good job. Tracking down a criminal just so you could get back a package for me… that's dedication," she said.

Jay noticed that Aria was trembling slightly in place and making weird noises. Looking closer, he realized with faint shock that her tears had returned, but they seemed to be joyful instead of nervous.

"Thank you, Guildmaster," Jay said respectfully.

Aria sniffled and wiped her eyes, looking up with a bittersweet smile. She barely managed to squeak out "thanks" before starting to tremble again.

"You're very welcome. I'm very proud to have you two as apprentices here," Flygon beamed. "Now, get on to your room and finish up your dinner. You're gonna need the energy for tomorrow!"

"Thank you again, Guildmaster," Jay said with a nod.

He turned around to the wood door and kicked it open with his foot. Taking one last look at Flygon, he led Aria into the dim guild behind them.

XxX

The two ate dinner without much conversation; Jay was busy stuffing his face with berries and Aria was still shivering with tears of joy to talk much. She picked at her food and squeaked a few incomprehensible words, and after a while, Jay began to get annoyed.

"Can you please stop crying like that? It's kind of annoying me," he said.

"Sorry! I'm just…" Aria trailed off, her eyes staring beyond Jay.

"What? Is there something bothering you?" Jay asked, sitting forward and preparing for a heart-to-heart.

"I just wish the Guildmaster wouldn't treat us like we're special," Aria said plainly.

That was an odd thing coming from her mouth, and Jay didn't know how to respond.  
>"I mean… You're a human-turned-Pokémon, which is practically unheard of. So you're special and all. And me… I've got my own quirks," Aria explained when she saw the confused look on her partner's face.<p>

"What do you mean?" Jay asked.

"Oh, just forget about it," Aria said quickly.

Jay sighed, his annoyance rising. "Why are you keeping secrets from me? Am I not trustworthy?" he asked.

"No! No! It's not that. It's just… I don't know how to tell you. I-I can probably tell you later; just not now. I just don't know how to tell you right now…" Aria picked up a yellow Aspear Berry and nibbled halfheartedly on it.

"I don't like that, though. It's like everyone's keeping secrets from me! First Flygon, and now you…" Jay rambled.

"Like I said, I'll tell you later. Just not now." Aria busied herself in eating the rest of her meal.

Jay gobbled up the last berry on his plate and set it aside, feeling full, tired, but above all, happy. They had completed another day of exploring, they had taken down a rotten criminal, and they had gotten off lightly despite their rule breaking. It was a good day.

He closed his eyes and curled up on his bed of straw, snuggling in tight to conserve heat. The air was cold and clammy but oddly relaxing. "I'll bug you tomorrow, I guess. I'm tired," he yawned.

"Yeah, so am I…" Aria said. She shuffled around on her bed, trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in. "Ugh… Good night, Jay."

"Good night. See you tomorrow," he replied lazily.

Jay began to doze off, his full belly lulling him to sleep. As he drifted off to sleep, he smiled.

_Maybe this'll work out okay after all…_

XxX

Mrs. Jackson stood in front of the bathroom mirror, staring in faint shock at the rat's nest that was her hair. She ran her fingers compulsively through her tangled blond locks, wincing in pain as she pulled on a particularly tough knot.

"Ugh… There is _no way_ that I'm going to my meeting looking like this," she mumbled under her breath.

She sighed and picked up her hairbrush, realizing that she had to tackle her monstrous hair eventually. And she still hadn't even gotten dressed.

"Honey? Are you ready yet?"

Her husband's voice came in from the other room. She peeked outside the bathroom door and wasn't surprised to find Mr. Jackson sitting on their hotel bed, still in his boxers. He held a remote in his right hand and was watching television.

"Have you seen my hair today?! It's disastrous! I won't be done for quite a while, I dare say," Mrs. Jackson replied. She tugged at a knot in her hair to prove her point. "If you're so eager to get going, why don't you get dressed in there? I won't watch!"

But her husband was too distracted by something on the television to notice what she had said.

Mrs. Jackson sighed. "Sometimes I wonder why I even deal with you…" She was only half serious; she truly loved her husband, even if he could be stubborn sometimes.

She returned to the bathroom and brought her hairbrush up to her hair. She was about to drag it through the tangles, but before she could do anything, three sharp knocks rang out on the door.

"I got it," Mr. Jackson said quickly. He strode to the door and clicked open the lock to see who was on the other side.

"I am truly sorry for the interruption. But are you Mr. Jackson?"

Peeking out the bathroom door, Mrs. Jackson saw a man in a blue uniform standing in the doorway. He had a blue cap on his head and held a white envelope in his hand. She had seen him once or twice—he was some sort of delivery man or something.

"Why, yes." Mr. Jackson straightened his pose and ran his hand over his head. "This is him."

"Great… I've got a letter for you. It's from… 'Elizabeth and Larry Littlefield'? It was first class mail; it seemed very urgent," the deliveryman said, looking over the white letter in his hand.

Mrs. Jackson sighed and cursed inwardly. _Ugh… Of course, those simpletons can't be bothered to do anything normal… If you want us so bad, why don't you just call us?!_

"Ah, yes. I'll just take that…" Mr. Jackson grabbed the letter from his hands. The deliveryman seemed rather surprised but nodded nonetheless. "Thank you, sir."

"Er… no problem." The deliveryman dipped his head and smiled. "If you need any letters delivered, feel free to call me!"

Mr. Jackson didn't bother to tell him that he would probably never write a letter in his life.

He closed the door and looked over the letter, turning it over in his hands. "Hmm… What could they be writing to us about?" he wondered aloud.

Mrs. Jackson set her hairbrush down and scampered out of the bathroom. She seized the letter from his hands, and sure enough, she recognized the loopy handwriting as her sister's.

"I have no idea… Maybe Jay's been acting up again," Mrs. Jackson assumed.

"I wouldn't be surprised. That little tyke never really liked them…" Mr. Jackson said.

Mrs. Jackson tore open the envelope with her long fingernails.

Inside was a plain white card with a gold border. Upon opening the card, a small piece of paper fluttered out and fell to the floor. As Mrs. Jackson began to read the writing inside the card, her husband picked up the spare piece of paper.

_My dear sister,_

_How are you doing? I hope that you are  
>finding your latest business trip a success.<br>Larry and I have been very busy ourselves.  
>Jay can really be a handful at times, but we<br>are honored to be taking care of him in your absence._

_However, something has happened while he was  
>in our care. I would've called as soon as<br>it happened, but we are too much in shock to talk  
>to you in person. I attached a newspaper<br>clipping to this letter; I hope it will help clear things up._

_Both of us are truly sorry for this tragic incident.  
>It was not our fault that this happened, and we<br>hope you can understand. Please reply as  
>soon as possible.<em>

_Your dear sister, Elizabeth._

Mrs. Jackson folded up the letter, her stomach sinking lower and lower. "No…" she whispered. "There's no way…"

"Read this." Mr. Jackson's voice was surprisingly firm as he shoved the scrap of paper in his wife's hands. "You need to read this. Now…"

Mrs. Jackson unfolded the grayish paper and found that it was a cutout from a newspaper article, just as Elizabeth had said. She began to read over it, her eyes widening in fear as she skimmed over the words.

_TEEN BOY FOUND ON SIDE OF RIVER BEND_

_Police and Paramedics Issue Warning about River Rafting_

_Last Saturday, a young boy in the care of his aunt and uncle went to  
>Whitewater River for a day of river rafting. The day started out normal<br>but took a turn for the worst._

_Jay Jackson (14) was with his aunt and uncle when a tragic accident happened.  
>Elizabeth Littlefield, one of his caretakers at the time, reported that Jackson<br>was swept overboard when the river reached a particularly rough patch.  
>Both Littlefields tried their best to keep Jackson on board, but their efforts were<br>sadly futile: he lost grip and tumbled into the rushing waters._

_Mrs. Littlefield contacted the police and paramedics as soon as they  
>finished the rest of their rafting trip. The police responded quickly and rushed to<br>the site, frantically looking for Jackson. After a quick search, they found Jackson's  
>body floating in shallow water. Though he looked like he had died,<br>a closer examination revealed that he was in fact still alive.  
>He had contracted a minor head injury and was having trouble breathing, and<br>he was rushed to the nearest hospital to recover._

_Jay's condition is relatively stable. He has lapsed into a coma and won't  
>respond to anything, however, his heart rate is stable and his head has been<br>patched up._

_Following this incident, the state police have issued a public warning about  
>river rapids. For more information, visit their website at…<em>

The rest of the paper was cut off.

Mrs. Jackson scanned over the letter again and again, praying that she had misread it. There was no way that Jay was truly in a coma… there was simply no way. No way…

_Why did she even take him river rafting?! She knows he's not an adventurous person! She should've kept him at home where he would've been happy… Grr, why is my sister so STUPID?!_

Despite her anger, she could feel tears stinging her eyes. Her husband also looked like he was on the verge of tears; he dropped the letter on the carpet and opened up his arms. Mrs. Jackson ran into them without hesitation.

"Oh, honey… I'm so sorry…" Mr. Jackson said simply.

For several minutes, the two held each other in their arms, not speaking a word. Tears fell down both of their faces without stopping. Mrs. Jackson wanted to go home so badly, hold Jay in her arms, tell him it would be okay even if he couldn't hear her.

But they were stuck in this stupid hotel room in a completely different state.

"We have to go back," she said.

"But what about—" Mr. Jackson inquired.

"I don't care. Tell Stanley that we're gonna miss his meeting. Family emergency. Surely he'll understand. And get the next ticket back home… we've gotta go back!" she cried.

Mr. Jackson looked like he wanted to argue with her logic, but he nodded and brushed away a tear. "I understand… I agree. We need to be back home… oh, I'm never gonna let him out of our sight again!"

He hastened to the phone to call his boss while Mrs. Jackson began to brush out her hair.

_Jay…_

XxX

**How do you like them apples? We got to see a bit of the human world again... yay? I guess...**

**And yes, I did write this chapter name with EarthBound in mind. In case you don't know, "Smiles and Tears" is the name of a song from EarthBound. (It got an awesome remix in the new Smash Bros!)**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Don't forget to review! :)  
><strong>


	11. The Great Storm

**Hello, friends! I am back again! I said that the story would be picking up soon... and I'm happy to say that I have delivered! It may be a bit short, but I think you'll like it... Enjoy!**

Chapter 11: The Great Storm

_BOOM!_

Jay's eyes shot open as the earth-shattering crash rang in his ears. He couldn't help but shriek a little, but he quickly stopped when he remembered where he was.

The guild was still dark. Only a few embers danced on the torches, and most of the guild members were still asleep. He could hear loud snores coming from another room—it seemed as though others hadn't been affected by the noise.

He sat up from his straw bed and looked around, curious as to what had happened. He saw Aria sleeping fitfully on her bed. Nothing looked odd or out of place in their little room.

He didn't dare venture into the hallway to see if there was something going on; after last night, he feared being caught and reprimanded by Krokorok again. Instead, he sat completely still and listened for another noise.

When he listened closely, he found that the room was not silent. He could barely hear a _tap-tap-tap_ that sounded vaguely like footsteps. He got to his feet and bared his jaws, ready to fight against an intruder, but no one showed their face.

Settling back down on his bed, he finally realized what the noise was: water. Rain, to be more precise. That also explained the boom earlier—could that have been rolling thunder?

He shivered and curled up on his bed, his teeth chattering. The room felt much colder now. For several minutes, he turned around, trying to keep himself warm in the rapidly-cooling room. Eventually, he ended up burying himself in straw, but he still felt chilled.

Jay closed his eyes, realizing that dawn was still a while away. _Maybe the storm will blow over by then, _he thought.

After a few more minutes of listening to the drum of rain, he fell back asleep.

XxX

"Jay…?"

The Totodile woke up with a piece of hay poking his eye.

He blinked hard and brushed it away, itching his stinging eyeball. He realized he was buried under a pile of straw. Initially, he couldn't figure out why he was, but then he remembered.

_The storm… Last night… man, it was freezing…_

"Get up, Jay! You're gonna miss breakfast!"

He rolled out of the straw and found that Aria was hovering over him, her eyes narrowed in irritation.

He blinked again, his eyes adjusting to the harsh light. The torches were relit, giving the whole place a happier feel, but he was still very cold. He hugged his arms around his body as he got to his feet.

"Ugh… It's freezing in here!" he mumbled sleepily.

"Yeah, it gets that way whenever a storm rolls in. But you shouldn't be complaining! You're a Water type! You love rain!" Aria said dismissively.

"Agh…" Jay rubbed his head as he picked up his Explorer Bag. "A who-what-where?"

"Never mind… we'll talk about it over breakfast. C'mon!" Aria raced down the hall at a surprisingly fast speed. Jay plodded after her, still feeling groggy and cold.

Breakfast was strangely muted. Not many Pokémon bothered to talk, and those who did mainly kept their comments short and precise. The only one who seemed to be talking a lot was Aria, who was trying to teach Jay more about exploring.

"On most rainy days, we still go out exploring. That is, unless you're especially weak to rain. Poor Magby… He has to stay inside all day," Aria said, casting a pitiful glance at the Fire type. Magby put on a tiny smile and waved back, but he was trembling fiercely from the cold.

"So you're saying we still have to go outside in the freezing cold rain and get soaked to the skin… all just for a handful of coins?" Jay asked.

"Yeah. But you shouldn't complain. Water type Pokémon like you love the rain!" Aria said.

"I still don't get this whole 'type' business," Jay said, chewing on a berry.

"It is really weird, yeah. But some Pokémon are more adversely affected by outside elements. Like Fire type Pokémon. They do better when the sun's shining. No one knows why this is so… but it makes sense, in a way. The heat of the day helps Fire types with their Fire type moves…" Aria explained.

"So when it's raining, I'll be stronger?" Jay asked.

"Yep. But only when you use certain moves… oh great, now you're gonna ask me about moves." Aria sighed and slumped forward, clearly unwilling to lecture him again.

"You don't have to," Jay said quickly.

"When we get out there, you'll see. Just focus really hard, and maybe you can use a Water type move now… I can't say much more than that. Eventually it'll just come naturally," Aria explained.

Jay shrugged. "I guess we'll just see what happens, then."

They continued eating breakfast in silence.

A few minutes later, the plates were cleared and the apprentices gathered in the room for the daily cheer. The weather had put a damper on the cheer; although the words were bright like the sun, the guild members were covered in rain clouds as they chanted along.

The Guildmaster noticed this and frowned. "C'mon, guys! Where's your cheer?" she asked.

"We're sorry, Guildmaster…" Plusle apologized.

"It's this dang rain!" Magby cried.

"This is the fourth big storm this month!" Cranidos screamed.

Flygon sighed. "I know… but we can't let a bit of rain bog us down, right?" she said, regaining her usual pep.

"Yeah…" Aria conceded.

"Great! Now, let's try this again!"

The guild members cheered once more, and though they sounded more enthusiastic than before, it seemed forced. When they completed the cheer, they all sighed and shuffled off to their usual positions.

Jay looked to Aria. "Everyone seems so sad… What's going on?" he asked.

"They're just bummed because of the weather. But to be fair, if you had to wallow through freezing cold rain every week, you'd be pretty upset too," Aria explained.

"Every _week?!"_ Jay cried.

"Yeah… We don't know what's up. It's weird—one minute, you're burning up, and the next, you're bogged down with water… weird," Aria explained.

"That may be true… but you're not going to let some rain get in your way!"

It was Guildmaster Flygon. She was smiling brightly and didn't seem to take notice of her other apprentices grumbling around her. She approached the duo with a mighty flap of her wings.

"Sorry about that, Guildmaster," Aria said.

"It's fine. Rain can kind of dampen your mood… if you'll excuse the pun." Flygon's eyes twinkled mischievously.

Aria snickered for a moment before regaining her composure. "Yeah… So anyway, what'll we be doing? Will we just find another job?" she asked.

"Yes. But do keep in mind… it is raining, and as such, the rivers are starting to swell with water. So it might be a good idea to stay inland, if you can…" Flygon cautioned.

"Oh, I'll stay away from the water. Not so sure about Jay, though…" Aria said, playfully nudging Jay. He scowled and tried to look as annoyed as possible, but when she smiled, he couldn't help but smile back.

Flygon laughed. "I wouldn't be surprised if he decided to take a dip," she said.

"Okay!" Jay interrupted. "So… let's get going! I'm sure there are lot of Pokémon that need our help… let's go!" he said.

Flygon nodded. "Yes, yes. I'm sorry for keeping you for so long… Anyway, see you later! Good luck on your exploration!" She waddled over to her room and opened the door, entering the brightly lit chamber. She closed the door behind her, leaving them alone with the other apprentices and the sound of rain.

"Let's go…" Jay mumbled.

The two apprentices walked up the ladder.

The sound of rain was much louder on the second floor. It was also much colder, and Jay could feel a certain dampness in the air. There were even fewer Pokémon on this floor, and Jay could see why; it was so much colder that very few Pokémon wanted to venture up.

Aria gravitated towards the Job Board and began perusing it, looking for a suitable job. Jay stared up the ladder, listening to the sound of rain. It seemed strangely calm to him, and the occasional rolls of thunder didn't seem as loud.

Jay found himself nodding off to the peaceful drum of the rain. He smiled and closed his eyes, slowly drifting off into a daydreaming state. He didn't notice what was going on around him until he was slapped awake—literally.

"Hello? Did you hear me?!" Aria snapped.

Jay rubbed his aching cheek and winced, still half-asleep. "Uh… wha—? Oh—oh yeah, I heard you… I guess…" He looked up again and tried not to doze off again.

"Yeah… you were daydreaming. Don't try to hide it," Aria said, a note of irritation in her voice.

"Sorry… The rain's just so relaxing…" Jay apologized.

"Don't worry—you'll be out there soon enough. I think I found a good job for us."

Aria tore a piece of paper off the corkboard and handed it to Jay. The Totodile glanced over the note, slowly nodding as he skimmed over the messy handwriting. From what he could tell, the client was a Chespin who had lost sight of a friend: a Wingull.

_"__We were playing in Harvest Glen when Wingull disappeared… oh, I'm so worried about her!" _the Chespin had wrote. _"The reward is 4,000 Poké, which is my entire life's savings! Please, oh please… Rescue Wingull!"_

Jay was at first eager to get his hands on 4,000 Poké… but then he remembered that Flygon would take away most of it.

"400 Poké is nothing to sneeze at," Aria reasoned.

"I guess that's okay… But where _is_ Harvest Glen? I've never heard of that place…" Jay asked.

Suddenly, Aria's face paled. Jay gulped; when she was afraid, he didn't want to know what she was afraid of. She cursed under her breath and started pacing back and forth.

"Um… You okay?" Jay asked.

"Harvest Glen… It's a little place not too far from here. Some Pokémon grow stuff there—trees and fruit and flowers and stuff. There are a few strays that try and eat it… overall, not a bad place," Aria murmured distractedly.

"Well, why are you so nervous?" Jay asked.

"It's where it is… It's just past Sage Forest. Or more accurately… just past Haxorus's Guild."

Jay leaned forward, his eyes widening as his pulse quickened. Somehow, those two words had put him on edge. Buizel had mentioned yesterday that he was part of Haxorus's Guild… what if Buizel was still hanging around, looking for an opportunity to pick them off?

However, despite the fear, Jay felt… excited. Yesterday, when he had fought the outlaw, he felt a strange rush of adrenaline. He became so thrilled that he had forgotten about his fear, and then he proceeded to beat the stuffing out of Buizel. Maybe he would get that rush again today…

"So?" Jay asked.

"Do you not remember our first exploration? We were ten feet away from the place! And yesterday, we met that horrible Buizel… So you should be worried!" Aria cried.

"But we beat him. We shouldn't worry about Pokémon we can overpower," Jay pointed out.

"We can't overpower some of the other Pokémon there…" Aria whispered sinisterly.

Jay's mind began to spin, trying to think of a plan to get past the guild. If what Aria said was true, there would be many strong Pokémon on the lookout for them. But the rain might be able to conceal them…

"We'll think of something… I promise," Jay said sincerely. "But for now, let's go!"

XxX

The rain was like nothing Jay had been in before.

It pounded his skin, soaking him to the bone in mere seconds. The sky was completely obscured by heavy black rain clouds. The rumbles of thunder were even louder than before, and the flashes of lightning were almost blinding. The wind howled through the branches, whistling past his ears and blowing the rain into his face.

But despite this, Jay still felt calm. It was much better than the searing sun. He felt at home.

"Alright. So you said we had to pass by Haxorus's Guild to get to Harvest Glen?" Jay asked.

"Yep," Aria replied.

"And there's no other way to get there?" Jay asked.

"There are other ways… but it requires running through brambles or passing over rivers. And Flygon warned us not to go over rivers," Aria said.

Jay nodded, his mouth turning into a smile.

"What the heck are you smiling about?! You're practically asking to be killed! Especially when you're hanging around me… they hate me! If they so much as smell me, they'll go after me!" Aria cried.

"I have a plan… oh man, they'll never see it coming!"

Aria's mouth curled up into a grin. "Ooh… This is gonna be fun!"

XxX

A boom of thunder shook the inner rooms of the guild. The tap of rain on the stone roof put Haxorus at ease—it was nature's lullaby, gently rocking him to sleep. He smiled and tried to keep his eyes open; he was starting to feel a bit sleepy.

_Hey hey… can't be fallin' to sleep jus' yet. We've still got lots ta do… _he thought as he straightened up. He tried to look as alert as possible, but he still couldn't conceal his smile.

"That lil' hothead… I'm sure she never saw this comin'!" he murmured to himself.

Another rumble of thunder rolled across the sky. The rain intensified, turning into a loud drumming. His smile grew wider.

He sat down on the floor and looked out the grimy window, staring into the blackened land. _If this keeps up, we'll all be flooded by next week… It's gonna be great!_

A flash of lightning lit up the gloomy scene. It was followed by another roll of thunder… but this seemed much louder than before. Haxorus stood up and growled, his nerves jumpy. He tried to reassure himself that it was nothing more than a particularly loud boom of thunder… but was that really all that was happening?

The rain suddenly seemed sinister. Haxorus tried to ignore his nervousness and walked to the door, opening it just a crack. He peeked out the door and scanned the area… and everything seemed normal. His apprentices were walking around, minding their own business, occasionally picking a fight with each other.

He relaxed and closed the door with a creak. He retreated back into his office and chuckled at his stupidity—"Was I seriously gettin' all nervous 'bout a bit of commotion?"

But then there was another loud crash. Haxorus knew this wasn't thunder.

He bolted to the door and peeked out again. The scene wasn't too different; his apprentices were still all there, but they were looking towards the sound of the crash. A few of them mumbled amongst themselves, while some glanced nervously around.

Haxorus considered revealing himself to the guild members, but he figured his presence wouldn't do much to help them. He closed the door and put his back to it, his mind racing to form a plan.

Another crash. This time, it was followed by a panicked scream.

Haxorus stopped thinking and pushed open the door, walking out into the chaos.

His apprentices were running around, yelling nonsense or hugging each other in fear. He growled in annoyance; he had taught his apprentices to not panic under pressure, but they didn't seem to heed his lessons.

He cleared his throat and tried to gain hold of the panicking Pokémon, but they continued to flail about and scream. He shook his head and strode through the masses, trying to find someone who wasn't losing their head over this.

"Guildmaster!"

Primeape was charging forward, his eyes wide. He was waving his arms and twitching his tail, looking no less panicked than the others. Haxorus could hear angry voices from the room behind Primeape, and he could smell the faint scent of something burning.

Haxorus stood in front of the monkey and grabbed his arms, picking him up until his eyes were level with his. "Calm down! Ya look like you've seen a ghost!" he spat.

"I-I'm sorry, Guildmaster…" Primeape gasped.

"I don't wanna hear your apologies! Tell me what's happenin'!" Haxorus growled.

"Oh! Yes! Yes yes yes… So sorry! So sorry…" Primeape said.

Realizing what he just said, he gasped and widened his eyes, gagging slightly as Haxorus growled. He didn't say anything as the seconds grew longer.

"You're a Primeape. A wonderful fighter. Not 'fraid of anythin'. So tell me this: why are ya acting so _wimpy?!_" Haxorus said, his voice steady but increasing in anger.

"It's… her! She's back!" Primeape squeaked.

Haxorus set him down just as another crash rang through the guild. His eyes widened and his heart raced—it was quite possibly the only Pokémon he was truly afraid of.

"Get e'eryone outta here. Now. If she's here…" Haxorus said absently.

Before either of them could do anything, a shadow appeared near the end of the stone hallway. Though the shadow was small, he knew who it was before she even spoke. Her words sent tingles down his spine.

"Well, well, well! Long time, no see… Guildmaster!"

XxX

**CLIFFHANGER! Mysterious shadow... Haxorus's Guild under attack... who could it be? (I'm sure you all know who it is... yeah, I'm terrible at cliffhangers.)**

**Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter. Don't forget to review!**


	12. Rescue at Harvest Glen

**Hello yellow! I am back with a very exciting chapter!**

**Just letting you know, I will be away for a few days and I won't have time to work on my story. So the next update may be a little late... later than usual, I mean. But don't worry; here's a nice long chapter to keep you held over until then! I think you'll like it.**

Chapter 12: Rescue at Harvest Glen

Jay stepped out of the forest and into the rain, dropping the leaves behind him. Aria spit a branch out of her mouth and twitched her tail. She instinctively brought her left paw up to her mouth so she could groom herself… but she hadn't realized that it were still covered in dirt until it was too late.

She let out a faint scream of horror and spit on the ground, yanking her paw from her mouth. She retched and stuck her tongue out while Jay looked on.

"Puh… Ugh! Dith-guth-ting!" she gasped. Her tongue was still hanging out of her mouth, making her words hard to decipher. She shook her head and spat multiple times, trying to get the mud off her tongue.

"You okay?" Jay asked as he looked on in mild amusement.

"Thith ith dithguthting!" she spat.

"It's okay, Aria… It's just a bit of mud! It won't kill you!" he said.

"Bluh… Berry! I need a berry! Now!" she gagged.

Jay unfastened his Explorer Bag and fished out a random berry—a Pecha Berry. Aria opened her mouth wide, and Jay placed the fruit in her jaw. She gobbled it up quickly and breathed a sigh of relief when she swallowed.

"Ugh… that's much better!" she said.

"I'm glad," Jay said with a smile.

Suddenly, Aria reached up and gave him a slap across the cheek. More mud was splattered on his face as he jolted back in shock. It was his first instinct to hit his partner back, but he stopped himself before he could.

"What was that for?!" he cried.

"That was the stupidest plan ever! I'm sure they noticed us!" Aria cried.

"It wasn't too bad!" Jay said.

"Yeah, I guess it wasn't too bad… It was HORRIBLE! Seriously? Getting slathered up in mud was your ultra genius plan?" Aria screamed.

"It was for camouflage! It wasn't too terrible!" Jay retorted.

"It wasn't bad for you… You nasty Totodiles just love to get yourselves dirty!" Aria roared.

"Don't say another word about it…" Jay lowered his voice to a whisper. Aria looked like she was about to respond, but he put a finger on her mouth to quiet her. "We're still really close to the guild. There's still a chance they could notice us. Let's take this bickering elsewhere… Plus, we're wasting time! Who knows where that Wingull is?"

Aria glanced at the massive stone fortress behind her and shuddered. "You're right…" she whispered. "I'm sorry. We'll talk about this later…"

Jay nodded. "Okay… let's get out of here!"

He looked forward at the endless field of grass and wildflowers. It didn't seem all that special to begin with—the grass was being tormented by the vicious rain, and the hills rolled gently up and down. In the distance, he could see the grass turn from a healthy green to a yellow color—it almost looked golden.

"The golden grass is where Harvest Glen begins… we're almost there!" Aria whispered.

Jay nodded to show he understood. He grabbed onto his soaking wet Explorer Bag and began to run forward on swift feet. Aria followed behind him, her legs making small thumps as they hit the ground.

Sage Forest quickly faded into the distance until it was a small green blur. Jay was absolutely certain that Haxorus couldn't hear them now. The two slowed their pace to a gentle jog before turning into a walk. The storm seemed to be slowing down; the rain pounded on them with less intensity.

Jay took one last nervous glance at the green blur in the background before asking a question.

"I wonder… Why didn't they notice us? You said there were a lot of guards there… and I agree; our plan wasn't that good. So why didn't they sound the alarm or anything?" Jay asked as he wiped a bit of mud off his wrist.

"You know, that's a good question… I mean, I'm a pink cat. No matter how much mud you slather on me, I'm bound to stand out… So why didn't they freak out and come attack us?" Aria wondered.

"Maybe the guards were taking a nap," Jay suggested.

"Doubtful," Aria said.

"Yeah… It's weird. But I'm not complaining—we made it past them, and that's good, considering all the worrying you went through," Jay said with a shrug.

The two continued up the hills in silence.

XxX

Things were anything but silent in Haxorus's Guild.

Even the Guildmaster himself was panicking, trembling in place at the tiny Pokémon that had invaded his guild. He knew it seemed silly to be afraid of something so tiny… but when it packed such power, he couldn't help but be afraid.

"You!" Haxorus roared. He tried to keep a straight face, tried to keep his fear contained in front of his enemy.

"Yep! It's me!" The Pokémon leapt up into the air, hovering for a moment. She spun around once, and Haxorus could notice flames dancing at the tip of her fingers. Smoke partially obscured her, but that didn't make her any less terrifying

"What're you doin' here?!" Haxorus barked.

"Oh, don't worry. I just came here to have a little fun! I do love having fun!" she replied.

Haxorus growled. "Shut it! I'm not gonna put up with ya talkin' all goo-goo an' all! Now, get out of the smoke an' face me like a real Pokémon… Victini!" he cried.

The figure fluttered forward on her tiny wings, leaving the smoke behind her. Just as Haxorus had expected, it was Victini: the tiny tan sprite who hated him with a passion. She had a playful grin on her face and flames on her fingers. She looked like a playful little kid… a kid who had a flamethrower in their possession.

"I'm awfully sorry to intrude, dear Haxorus. It's just… you sure have put a damper on my spirits, if you'll excuse the pun," Victini drawled.

"Cut it out!" Haxorus cried.

"Oh, I'm sorry! Did I ignite your hatred? Are you starting to lose your cool? It would certainly be terrible if you burned up with rage! Please don't blow your lid…" Victini teased.

"Stop with the lousy puns an' tell me what you're doin' here! NOW!" Haxorus screamed.

"Like I said… I just wanted to have a little fun! So what if I burned a hole in the side of the castle? It's all in good fun!" Victini giggled.

"Ya did WHAT?!" Haxorus cried.

"Never mind… I'm just coming here to deliver a warning. While you have stopped me for now, you're not gonna follow through with your plans. You just… aren't. Mark my words: in three days, all this rain will be evaporated!" Victini said.

"Not if I can 'elp it!" Haxorus grumbled.

"You can't help it, so don't worry about it." Victini winked and fluttered away, but before she exited the building, she turned around and took one more look at Haxorus. "Oh, and by the way… You might wanna make your fortress out of something less flammable than wet brick and moss… It was pouring out and I could still burn through it!"

With that, she fluttered away into the cloud of smoke, leaving nothing behind but some very panicked Pokémon.

XxX

As Jay reached the top of the gold-crested hill, he began to show signs of tiring. He hadn't been attacked at all, save for a rogue Pidgey in Sage Forest. And the rain had energized him through their journey… so why was he tired now?  
>He realized it must have been his stomach… he hadn't had much to eat that morning. The quietness of the guild made him pick at his food, and he barely ate.<p>

He grabbed an apple from his sopping Explorer Bag and crunched into it, ignoring the sogginess of the skin. With each bite, he felt a burst of energy course through his skin. The cramp in his side disappeared, and he felt like he could run a hundred miles.

"How do you like them apples?" Aria asked with a smile.

"Delicious!" Jay said, wiping his snout and swallowing.

"No… I mean _those_ apples," Aria said as she pointed forward.

Jay looked up from his feet and found they had finally reached the crest of the hill. The golden grass beneath his feet was soft and wet, and as Jay followed her hand, he realized that they had reached their destination.

The hill sloped down into a valley below. In the valley, many trees grew from the ground. Fields of grain whipped back and forth in the wind, and some of the ground had been worn down to dirt. The entire scene was partially obstructed by the sheets of rain pounding down, but Jay could still see most of it.

"Here we are: Harvest Glen!" Aria said happily.

Jay didn't say a word as they began their hike down the hill. The storm was starting to pick up again, and either way, Aria was too busy blabbing her mouth off for him to say anything.

"Yeah… Harvest Glen is a pretty cool place. Part of it is kind of a community garden thing, but most of it is a mystery dungeon. Lots of Bug type Pokémon hang out there… some of them eat the crops and apples and stuff. Oh, and speaking of which… Even though you may see a lot of berries or apples, don't pick up any of them; the gardeners here are really protective of them… trust me, I learned that the hard way…"

After a while, Jay tuned her out, focusing only on trudging forward. The ground had taken on a soft, swampy feel, owing mainly to the rain. Jay was starting to tire of the endless rain; he was sopping wet and could barely see anything.

The two reached the bottom of the hill and found themselves facing a strange maze of crops and trees. Through the damp scent of rain, Jay could smell something sweet and earthy. The golden grass ticked his muddy feet as it blew in the wind.

"Let's get going! The sooner we get out of the rain, the better!" Aria said, shaking her head. Most of the mud had washed off her by now, but sparse patches of dirt ruffled her fur. She looked rather irritated that she was getting so muddy.

Jay blinked hard and wiped a drop of water from his eye. "Yeah. Let's get going." He walked forward into the field of grain and began their journey through Harvest Glen.

With all the rain and commotion going on, it was hard to hear anything that was going on. Thunder boomed like a cannon and lightning forked the dark sky. The field of grain was much taller than them and blocked some of the raindrops, but Jay still found himself soaked to the skin.

The golden wheat did more to hurt them in the long run. Sometimes, they would trample some grain, pushing it into the dirty ground. Sometimes, it would stick to them, making them covered in mud and crops. Jay could feel his nose starting to itch from the pollen and grass; Aria sneezed several times.

Besides the environment, the duo had to deal with many new Pokémon. The first enemy Jay ran into was a Sewaddle: a green Pokémon resembling a caterpillar covered in a bitten leaf. It had two small incisors in its mouth. It looked rather cute, which made Jay all the more surprised when it began attacking.

Turning to Aria, it spat a thin, silky string of thread from its mouth. Aria tried to jump out of the way, but the thread snared her and tripped her up. She fell to the muddy ground with a yelp, but Sewaddle still wasn't done.

It continued to spit out the thread, and as Jay looked on in horror, it managed to tie Aria's legs up, preventing her from moving. She was ensnared in a sticky web.

Aria began to scream and struggle, but the more she thrashed, the more tangled the web became. Jay could do little more than watch in horror as Aria was reduced to a sobbing mess. And the Sewaddle still hadn't gone away.

"You idiot! Stop staring at me! Do something!" Aria cried.

"What can I do? Help break you out?" Jay cried.

"Attack it, you idiot! It may look like a cute little caterpillar, but it'll string you up if you let your guard down! DO IT!" Aria screamed.

Jay looked at the Sewaddle, who let out a tiny squeak and blinked its eyes. It didn't look remotely dangerous, but if something could disable his partner, he knew it could really hurt him.

He let out a cry and jumped towards it, and at that moment, something very peculiar happened. While Jay was yelling, he felt a pull in his gut. He could feel something cold sliding up his throat, and as he reached the climax of his scream, something was expelled from his maw.

_What the—water?!_

The stream of water hit the Sewaddle with surprising force, knocking it to the ground. Jay fell to his knees, his eyes widened and his throat cold. He felt dizzy and disoriented like he had just thrown up… and anyway, wasn't that really what had happened?

Jay sputtered and coughed, trying to get his head straight. He glanced at Aria, who was still trying to struggle free from the spider web that held her. The Sewaddle was trying to recover from the spurt of water that had hit it.

"Urgh… What was that?!" Jay gagged.

"You used a Water type move! Congrats!" Aria said. "Now hurry up and beat that thing!"

Jay's eyes widened. Until then, he had been dying to know more about this whole "Water type" nonsense… but now he wasn't so eager to learn about it. Was that all he could do as a Water type? Vomit up streams of water to attack enemies? It didn't seem like the most effective way of attacking…

As he glanced at the Sewaddle, he found that it was still trying to stand up. It seemed dizzy and was soaking wet, partially from the rain, partially from Jay's dowsing attack. If a spray of water was all it took to damage a Pokémon…

He got up off his feet and took a deep breath. He focused all his energy into using that attack again. He felt a tug in his gut and his throat contract as water slid up to his mouth.

He finally exhaled, and when he did, another stream of bubbly water flew from his mouth. It hit the Sewaddle head on once more, and when it flew back, it landed in a puddle of mud. It didn't get up afterwards.

Jay coughed; he still wasn't used to throwing up water to attack. He was tempted to fall to the ground again, but Aria made sure that wouldn't happen.

"Great job, doofus. Now get over here and give me a hand!"

Jay stumbled over to the struggling Pokémon and grabbed the sticky web, trying to rip it apart. It proved much harder than it seemed; it was very sticky, and Jay found himself getting more tangled the more he tried to get it off.

Eventually, he gave a great tug, and with a mighty rip, the silky threads were torn from Aria's legs. The web fell to the ground and appeared to melt into the earth, turning into mud and finally vanishing.

Aria got up and stretched her legs, shaking her fur and blinking hard. "Whew! That was rough, let me tell ya!" she hooted.

"I can imagine being stuck in a web cannot be fun in the slightest," Jay said.

"Oh, and great job! It looks like you've finally learned how to use Water Gun!" Aria congratulated.

"Er… thanks? To be honest, it feels more like projectile barfing than anything…" Jay said, wiping his mouth.

"Yeah, I'm sure it feels kind of like that. But you'll get used to it… Hey, look on the positive side: at least you're not a Fire type. Could you imagine having _fire _coming out of your mouth? Talk about heartburn…" Aria said.

Jay winced and felt a surge of thankfulness to whoever or whatever had transformed him into a Pokémon. He could hardly imagine the pain of having to belch up fire to attack his enemies.

"Anyway, let's get going! Time's a-wasting!" Aria said.

The two continued their journey through Harvest Glen without further discussion.

As they continued their trek through the dungeon, they encountered many other Pokémon. But Jay found that it was actually very easy to spit up water. His Water Gun attack seemed to be very effective; Aria said it was probably due to the rain.

It was becoming almost second nature to him, so it came as something of a surprise when he became unable to perform his attack. He concentrated with all his might, but he simply couldn't use Water Gun against the enemy Ledyba.

"That happens if you use a move too many times," Aria said, taking note of Jay's struggle. "Try using something else instead!"

So Jay stopped trying to use Water Gun and lunged forward, scratching the Ledyba. The large ladybug spiraled out of the air and fell to the ground with a wet slosh.

The duo continued for about one hour. During this time, the rain slowed and sped up but never stopped, meaning the two were constantly getting soaked. They met many Pokémon and were almost defeated many times, but the two never slowed down.

Jay was starting to think that they'd never find the Wingull they were searching for—it would be almost impossible in the rain. But after a long time of searching, they finally found a large tree sprouting with ripe apples.

The tree was almost stripped bare of leaves; the gale-force winds had torn most of them off. Apples clustered the base of the tree. They all looked muddy and bruised, completely unlike the shiny apples still on the tree.

At first, the two didn't take much note of the tree, but a frightened trill brought their attention to the canopy.

There was a small bird perched on a branch, its wings tucked in at its side. It was mostly white but had two blue stripes on its wings. It had a long beak and trembled in fear. Jay knew this Pokémon was a Wingull.

"Do you think that's the one?" Jay asked, remembering their target was a Wingull.

"We haven't seen any other Wingulls around here, so it has to be…" Aria said, a tone of sarcasm in her voice.

"H-hey! Why are you talking about me? I can hear you, ya know…!"

The Wingull had noticed the presence of Jay and Aria, and he didn't seem at all comforted. He trembled more and looked positively terrified. Jay wasn't surprised; he knew some Pokémon were wary of strangers. But it still did annoy him that he wasn't grateful that they were coming to rescue him.

Jay tried to be nice. He smiled and said "Hey, buddy! How's it going?" Wingull didn't reply—he just cowered more.

Aria slapped him. "You're just making him scared! Shut your mouth and let me handle it!" she hissed. Jay nodded meekly and closed his mouth.

The Skitty approached the tree and wagged her tail. "Hey, Wingull! We're Team River Song, and we're here to rescue you!" Aria said.

Wingull looked up and stopped trembling.

"Chespin sent us. He sounds really worried… we just had to help him out!" Aria continued.

"Oh my goodness! Chespin?" Wingull said. His voice was still shaky, but it was more from relief than fear now.

"Yeah. All you have to do is fly down here, and we'll bring you back! Chespin will be overjoyed! So c'mon down!" Aria finished.

Wingull dove down without a second's hesitation. Jay was relieved that Wingull hadn't tried to argue with them—that would've made their difficult task even more complicated. His stomach rumbled as he realized he was still very hungry from breakfast.

"Thank you so much, you guys! I'll never forget this as long as I live!" Wingull said happily. He perched on Aria's back as the two prepared to return to the guild.

Jay tapped his Explorer Badge, and the familiar pillar of luminous light descended upon him. Aria did the same, and even though Wingull seemed surprised, he stayed put. The golden light blinded Jay, and his feet left the ground as they teleported home.

XxX

Haxorus growled with displeasure as he scanned the charred hole in the ground. He was standing with Primeape and the two guards, Throh and Sawk. Throh and Sawk looked nervous; they feared the Guildmaster's wrath and felt like they were constantly at risk. Primeape's brow was furrowed.

"How the hey did she burn through the castle?! It's pourin' rain out 'ere! Ain't no way she could burn through anythin' in this weather!" Haxorus growled.

"We suspect that she may have used her psychic powers in conjunction with Searing Shot," Sawk said cautiously.

"Plus, Searing Shot is already powerful as it is… though we never imagined that it could be this powerful," Throh added.

"An' you say tha' you saw 'er out 'ere?" Haxorus asked gruffly.

"Yeah. She was doing a silly little dance, sticking her tongue out at us…" Sawk said.

"And then we blinked, and the next thing we knew, she was gone," Throh said, looking down at the ground. His stomach writhed; from the steadily growing scowl on Haxorus's face, he could tell the Guildmaster wasn't pleased.

"Why didn't ya tell us she was 'ere as soon as ya saw 'er?! Then maybe we coulda prevented this disaster from happenin'! Did ya ever think of that?! Huh?!" Haxorus cried.

"We thought she had just shown up to taunt us…" Sawk said defensively.

Quick as a wink, Haxorus grabbed Sawk by the uniform. His eyes widened and his blue skin turned pale. Throh backed up, holding his hands up in defense. Primeape glared at Throh and advanced on him, his hands clenched into fists at his side. Throh gulped; he did not want to face the fury of Primeape. If anything, it was worse than Haxorus's anger… and a lot more painful.

"What did I tell ya 'bout bein' a guard?" Haxorus said. His voice was barely audible; he had lowered it to a whisper and the rain was deafeningly loud.

"Uh… d-don't sleep on the job?" Sawk squeaked.

"Don't. Assume. _Anythin'._" With each word, Haxorus tightened his grip on Sawk. Sawk reacted accordingly; his eyes widened and he began to tremble in place. But he didn't scream or even say anything—he was too petrified to speak.

"If ya see a stranger outside of our lil' abode, keep an eye on 'em. That's why I hired two o' ya: one could keep an eye on the stranger, while the other could let me know there's a weirdo outside. If ya see anyone—_anyone_—tha' shouldn't be there… don't jus' assume they're comin' by ta look at the architecture o' this place. Ya got that?!" Haxorus continued.

"Y-yes sir…" Sawk squeaked.

"WHAT WAS THAT?!" Haxorus thundered.

"Yes! Yes! Yes sir! I will never mess up again! Never!" Sawk cried.

"Neither will I!" Throh added hastily. Primeape was looking downright murderous as he advanced on the bipedal Pokémon.

Haxorus seemed content. He set Sawk down, and Primeape finally backed away from the other guard. They both breathed a sigh of relief—this was much better than some other punishments they had received.

"Y'all can go back to your positions. But I ain't takin' any o' this namby-pamby nonsense next time… ya hear?!" Haxorus said, his voice rising slightly in volume.

"Yessir," Sawk and Throh murmured.

"I'm gonna put a few more Pokémon on the job with ya. I have a feelin' tha' lil' miss Victini's gonna be visitin' a lot now, an' I don't want ya ta let 'er in again!" Haxorus added.

"Yessir. Thank you, sir." The Pokémon put their hands together and bowed respectfully.

"An' we're gonna need someone ta fix this…" Haxorus gestured at the hole in the ground. Though the fires had long since been quenched, the faint scent of burnt leaves still lingered in the air.

"We can possibly get help from Pinsir and Ursaring… They're actually pretty talented when it comes to building. I often compare them to Gurdurrs…" Primeape said. Though his voice was much more confident than the trembling guards, he was still burning up with anxiety.

"Good. I'm sure they're all too eager ta get some stuff done," Haxorus mused.

"Shall I get them?" Primeape asked.

"Yeah… get e'eryone together. Give 'em a pep talk. We're gonna step things up 'ere from now on. We're gonna train 'em 'til their butts fall off and their eyes fall outta their heads… Things are gonna heat up here," Haxorus ordered.

"Yessir. Right away." Primeape scurried away, all too thankful to be away from Haxorus's steely glare. Throh and Sawk did the same, returning to their positions. Only Haxorus stayed.

He looked up at the pouring rain and smiled. If only Victini would stop butting in on them every second, things would be perfect. He cursed and grumbled something about Victini's stupid plans—the world would never burn when it was drenched in water.

"Jus' ya wait, Victini… jus' ya wait."

XxX

**I bet you didn't expect that, did you? It looks like we have a bit of a rivalry here... Victini versus Haxorus! And Aria and Jay are completely clean... well, besides the fact they're crawling around in mud. Camouflage always works!**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Don't forget to review! **


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